Got severance, how does it affect benefits? - any advice?

My employer is paying severance in instalments and I am not sure whether to file now. I worked as a janitorial supervisor before this. I also wonder about the job-search requirement. Did you file straight away?

Some states only count certain kinds of severance. A local workforce centre could tell me which.

Keep everything in writing and save the confirmation numbers. It made the follow-up calls so much easier.