Been there! I missed my certification last month and was freaking out just like you. You're totally fine - you have until Saturday at midnight to certify for the previous week. I actually ended up certifying on a Wednesday and it went through without any issues. Your payment might be delayed by a couple days but you definitely won't lose the money. The stress isn't worth it so definitely set up those phone reminders! I now have mine set for Sunday morning AND Tuesday evening just in case. The NY unemployment system is already complicated enough without us making it worse by panicking over stuff like this 😊

Don't panic! I literally did the exact same thing two weeks ago - went out with friends on Sunday and completely forgot to certify until Monday morning. I was so stressed thinking I'd lost a week of benefits! But everyone here is right - you have until Saturday at midnight to certify for the previous week. I logged in Monday afternoon and it went through perfectly fine. My payment was maybe delayed by one day but that was it. The NY system actually expects people to miss Sunday sometimes, which is why they give you the full week. Just make sure you don't let an entire week pass without certifying because then you'd have to call (and good luck with that!). Set up multiple phone reminders - I now have one for Sunday morning and another for Wednesday just in case. Trust me, this won't affect your claim at all!

I've been helping people with ID.me verification issues for months now, and I want to add a few more troubleshooting tips that have worked for others: 1) Try using incognito/private browsing mode - this eliminates any browser extension conflicts, 2) If you're on mobile, make sure your phone's camera lens is clean (sounds obvious but you'd be surprised!), 3) For the selfie part, hold the phone at arm's length and look directly at the camera, not at your image on screen, 4) If you wear contacts, try without them as sometimes the reflection can interfere with facial recognition. Also, Pro tip: If you get through the document scan but fail at facial recognition, don't restart the whole process - you can usually just retry the selfie portion. The verification usually takes 2-3 business days to process once you successfully complete all steps, so factor that into your timeline. Hang in there - almost everyone gets through eventually!

I'm dealing with the exact same issue right now! Been stuck on the facial recognition part for 3 days straight. Reading through all these tips is super helpful - I had no idea about the VPN issue or using a dark surface for the ID scan. Going to try the phone + Safari + natural lighting combo tomorrow morning, and definitely turning off my VPN first. It's so frustrating that such an important process has so many technical glitches, but at least it sounds like most people eventually get through. Thanks everyone for sharing what worked for you - gives me hope I'll figure this out soon!

Just keep filing your weekly claims until the system won't let you anymore. That's what I did and it worked out fine. You'll know when you're done because there won't be a weekly claim to file.

Just went through this myself! My benefits ended exactly at 26 weeks even though I still had some money left in my account. The key thing is that NY uses whichever limit you hit first - either 26 weeks OR your total benefit amount. I'd recommend logging into your NY.gov account weekly to check both your remaining weeks and dollar amount so you're not caught off guard. Also, make sure you keep detailed records of your job search activities because as others mentioned, they can audit that even after benefits end. The uncertainty is stressful but at least you can track it yourself online.

Update: Just finished filing my new claim! The process was straightforward once I had all my information ready. One tip - they ask for exact dates of employment so make sure you have that info handy. My claim is now showing as pending and I should hear back within a few days about approval. Thanks everyone for the help!

Great to hear you got your claim filed successfully! Just wanted to add for anyone else reading this - if you're filing a new claim after your previous one expired, make sure to keep documentation of your job search activities from day one. Even while your claim is pending, NYS Department of Labor expects you to be actively looking for work. I learned this the hard way when they asked for my job search records retroactively during my eligibility review. Also, if you worked in multiple states during your base period, you might need to file an interstate claim which has different requirements.

ugh the whole system is so confusing! I got one of these letters too and freaked out thinking I did something wrong. Turns out it's just paperwork nonsense

Just to clarify - fact finding isn't just paperwork. It's a legitimate investigation where NYS Department of Labor interviews both you and potentially your former employer to determine if you qualify for benefits. The outcome can definitely affect whether you get approved or denied, so take it seriously and provide accurate information.