Hey! Just wanted to chime in as someone who literally just went through this exact process last week. That approval email is your green light - you're all set to start certifying! A couple things that really helped me: - The labor.ny.gov website can be super slow on Sunday mornings, so I ended up using the phone system (888-581-5812) which was way faster - Make sure you answer all the certification questions honestly - they ask about any work you did, income earned, etc. Even if you worked just a few hours, report it - Keep track of your certification dates! I use my phone calendar to set weekly reminders The waiting week thing threw me off too but it's pretty straightforward - you certify for that first week but don't get paid for it. Think of it like a one-week "deductible" before your benefits kick in. One more thing - if you haven't already, definitely check that your address is correct in the system. My friend had issues because his mailing address was wrong and his determination letter got sent to the wrong place. You're in the home stretch now! The approval is the hardest part to get through 👍

Just wanted to add my experience since I went through this exact same thing about 6 months ago! That approval email is basically your "you're done with the hard part" notification - you can absolutely start certifying this upcoming Sunday. A few things that really saved me headaches: 1. The online system at labor.ny.gov works best if you clear your browser cache first. I had so many issues until someone told me this trick. 2. When you certify, they'll ask if you looked for work that week. During my claim period you had to say yes and list 3 job search activities, but I heard they might have changed the requirements recently. Just answer honestly based on what you actually did. 3. About the tax withholding - definitely think about this carefully! I opted to have taxes taken out (10% federal, 2.5% state) and was glad I did come tax season. But if you need every penny right now, you can always opt out and deal with taxes later. 4. The determination letter they mentioned should have your weekly benefit amount. Mine took about a week to arrive in the mail, but you don't need to wait for it to start certifying. You're basically at the finish line now! The approval email means all the review stuff is done and you just need to do your weekly check-ins to get paid. Congrats on getting through the worst part! 🙌

I completely understand your anxiety about this situation - unemployment fraud investigations can feel overwhelming, but there's reason to be cautiously optimistic given your circumstances. Since you're dealing with around $800 in unreported earnings and it was clearly an unintentional oversight rather than deliberate fraud, you're likely looking at an overpayment case rather than criminal prosecution. NYS Department of Labor generally reserves felony charges for cases involving substantial amounts (typically several thousand dollars) and clear evidence of intentional deception. For your situation, the most probable outcome is that you'll need to repay the overpayment plus penalties, possibly with a payment plan option. The key is to respond immediately to their investigation, provide complete documentation of the work you did and earnings you received, and emphasize that the failure to report was an honest mistake. Consider contacting your local legal aid society for free guidance on how to properly respond to the investigation - they can help ensure you handle this correctly from the start.

I'm in a very similar situation and this thread has been incredibly reassuring. I received my investigation notice about three weeks ago and have been absolutely terrified about potential criminal charges. Reading everyone's experiences here makes me realize that NYS Department of Labor seems to handle these cases much more reasonably than I expected. My situation involved about $1,200 in unreported gig work over several months - I genuinely thought since it was cash payments under a certain threshold I didn't need to report it weekly. I've already submitted my response with all the documentation I could gather, and I'm hoping for an overpayment determination rather than anything criminal. Has anyone dealt with amounts slightly over $1,000? I'm wondering if that pushes it into different territory even though the intent was never fraudulent.

I'm dealing with the exact same issue right now! Filed in September and still seeing all zeros with that generic "continuing to work on application" message. It's so frustrating because there's literally no way to know what's actually wrong without getting through to someone on the phone. I've been calling every morning at 8am sharp but keep getting the busy signal or that automated message saying they're experiencing high call volume. Has anyone had luck calling at specific times of day? I'm wondering if I should just bite the bullet and try one of those callback services people are mentioning since this is going on week 6 for me now.

Ugh, this is exactly what I'm going through right now too! Filed in late August and have been staring at those same $0.00 amounts for weeks. The most frustrating part is that "continuing to work on your application" message - like, what are they actually working on?? Why can't they just tell us what the hold-up is? I've been calling every single day at 8am when they open but keep getting either busy signals or that automated "high call volume" message. It's like they have maybe 3 people answering phones for the entire state. Based on what everyone's saying here, it sounds like it's probably an identity verification issue or some kind of manual review that got triggered. I'm definitely going to check my spam folder tonight in case I missed an email from them. And honestly, after reading all these responses about Claimyr, I might just try it. At this point I've probably spent 20+ hours trying to get through on my own with zero success. If I'm potentially missing out on weeks of benefits, paying someone to actually get me connected to a real person seems worth it. Thanks for posting this - at least now I know I'm not the only one dealing with this nightmare! 😤

Good luck with your move! Fort Drum to anywhere else is usually an upgrade lol. The unemployment benefits should help with the transition costs.

I'm currently going through a similar situation with my spouse's upcoming PCS from another NY base. One thing I'd add is to also keep documentation of any job search efforts you made to try to find remote work with your current employer - the NYS Department of Labor sometimes asks about whether you explored alternatives before quitting. Also, if your medical office has any branches near your new duty station, it might be worth asking if they could transfer you (even if unlikely) just to show you tried all options. The more documentation you have showing the PCS move was unavoidable, the smoother your claim process will be.

I feel your pain - the NY unemployment system is absolutely broken. I went through the same nightmare for over a month trying to get my claim straightened out. What finally worked for me was a combination approach: I used that Claimyr service someone mentioned (totally worth it even though I was skeptical at first) AND I also reached out to my state assemblyperson's office. They have a constituent services department that can actually get NYSDOL to respond faster. Just Google "[your area] state assembly" and call their office - they deal with unemployment issues all the time. Don't give up, you're entitled to your benefits and there ARE ways to get through, even though the system makes it ridiculously hard.

I'm going through the exact same thing right now - it's absolutely maddening! I've been calling for over two weeks and either get a busy signal or sit on hold for hours just to get disconnected. The worst part is they sent me a notice saying I have to call them to verify something, but then make it literally impossible to actually reach anyone. It feels like being trapped in some kind of bureaucratic nightmare. Reading through these comments gives me hope though - sounds like that Claimyr service and contacting your state representative might actually work. Going to try both tomorrow because I'm not giving up on money I'm legally entitled to. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and solutions!