I'm dealing with this exact same situation - filed my claim about 10 days ago and my account also shows "pending eligibility review" with no payments yet. It's honestly a relief to see I'm not alone in this, though I wish none of us had to go through it. The stress of waiting for benefits when you need them to pay bills is really overwhelming. I've been calling that automated line Connor mentioned (1-888-209-8124) every few days just to confirm my certifications are going through properly. From what everyone's sharing here, it sounds like we just have to be patient even though it's really hard when rent is due. Definitely going to keep filing those weekly claims no matter what - thanks for that advice Natasha! Hoping we all see our payments soon.

I'm in the exact same situation - filed my claim 12 days ago and still stuck on "pending eligibility review" with no payments yet. The financial stress is real when you're depending on these benefits to cover rent and basic expenses. Reading everyone's experiences here is both reassuring (that this delay is normal) and frustrating (that the system is so slow). I've been religiously filing my weekly certifications and keeping screenshots of everything. One thing I learned from calling the automated line is that you can also check your monetary determination letter online - mine shows my benefit amount but still says "under review." Has anyone noticed if there are certain days of the week when status updates typically happen? Trying to figure out if there's any pattern to when they process these reviews.

I'm going through this exact same frustrating experience right now! Been stuck in this "personal identification" loop for almost two weeks and it's been driving me crazy. I had no clue they meant things like PIN numbers and claim IDs when they kept asking for "personal identification" - I thought they wanted me to mail them copies of my driver's license or something! It's so ridiculous that they use such vague terminology instead of just telling you upfront "we need your SSN, PIN, claim ID, and driver's license number to verify your account." Reading through everyone's experiences here has been a huge help though - at least now I know exactly what to have ready for my next call attempt. I'm definitely going to try calling first thing tomorrow morning with everything prepared: SSN, PIN from my original filing, claim ID number, driver's license number, exact filing date, and mailing address. Hopefully that finally gets me past their verification maze! Thanks to everyone who shared what actually worked - this community is way more helpful than anything on the official NYSDOL website.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Just got off the phone with them again today and they kept asking for "personal identification" without explaining what that actually means. It's so confusing because when you hear "personal identification" you naturally think they want like a photo ID or passport, not your PIN number from when you filed! After reading through all these comments, I realize I've been missing key pieces - I was only giving them my SSN and DOB but didn't know they also wanted my claim ID and PIN. It's really frustrating that different agents seem to ask for different combinations of information too. Some want your driver's license number, others want bank details, and some want your exact filing date. Why can't they just have a standard checklist they go through? Anyway, I'm going to call back tomorrow morning with absolutely everything ready: SSN, PIN, claim ID, driver's license number, filing date, mailing address, and bank account info. Hopefully that covers all their verification requirements! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread is way more helpful than spending hours on hold just to get confused by their vague terminology.

Just wanted to add that you should definitely apply ASAP since there's usually a waiting period before benefits start. Also, keep all your pay stubs and any paperwork from the resort - NYS Department of Labor will need to verify your wages. I worked seasonal construction and it took a few weeks to get everything processed. One tip: when you file your weekly claims, be honest about any odd jobs or cash work you might pick up between seasons since they'll cross-reference with other agencies.

Just want to second what others said about applying quickly! I worked at a seasonal beach resort on Long Island and was able to collect UI between seasons. One thing I learned the hard way - make sure you understand your "benefit year" dates. NYS Department of Labor calculates your benefits based on wages from a specific 12-month period, and if you wait too long to file, you might miss out on including your most recent seasonal earnings. Also, if your resort does file standby paperwork, you'll get a notice about it - don't assume they did it automatically. I'd recommend calling them to confirm whether they're putting you on standby status or if you need to do regular job searches.

This gives me so much hope! I've been struggling to get through for my partial claim too - my retail job cut me from 30 hours to 12 hours per week in January and I keep putting off calling because I'm terrified of the phone system. Reading everyone's tips here is super helpful, especially about having all your documentation ready and calling right at 8am. One question - did anyone else have issues with their employer not wanting to provide documentation of the hour reduction? My manager keeps saying "just tell them we're slow" but I feel like I need something more official in writing. Should I ask HR directly or is there a specific form my employer needs to fill out?

Ruby, thank you SO much for posting this! I've been dreading making the call for my partial claim after my hours got cut from 40 to 20 per week last month. Seeing that you actually got through and completed everything gives me the courage to finally pick up the phone tomorrow. I'm definitely going to follow your advice about calling right at 8am - I've been trying in the afternoons which clearly isn't working. Quick question: when you were on hold for 35 minutes, did they give you any updates about your place in line or estimated wait time? Or do you just have to sit there wondering if you're still connected? Also, did the agent ask you to have your bank account info ready for direct deposit setup, or do they handle that part separately? Thanks again for sharing your success story - it's exactly what I needed to hear today!

I'm also a per diem worker (physical therapy assistant) and I totally get your stress about this! I was literally losing sleep over whether I was answering the certification questions correctly when I first started claiming. What really clicked for me was when someone explained it this way: the questions are asking about that specific week only, not your overall employment status. So if no shifts were available that week, you literally didn't work any hours (answer: no) and you weren't offered any work to refuse (answer: no to refusing work). I've been certifying for about 3 months now using this approach and haven't had any issues. The one tip I'd add is to always certify on the same day each week and try to do it around the same time - this helps you get into a routine and reduces the chance of forgetting details about what happened that week. You're definitely not alone in this confusion, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes pretty straightforward!

I'm a per diem medical technologist and went through this exact same worry when I started collecting! The thing that really helped me was understanding that the weekly certification is literally asking about just those 7 days - nothing more, nothing less. If no shifts were posted or available during that week, then you genuinely didn't work (0 hours) and there was no work offered for you to refuse. I always answer that I was available because I truly was ready to pick up shifts if any had been offered. I've been doing this successfully for about 6 months now. The only time I had any issues was when I forgot to report some holiday pay correctly, but that was totally my fault. One thing that really gave me peace of mind was realizing that healthcare facilities rely heavily on per diem staff - we're not some edge case the system can't handle. DOL sees claims like ours all the time. Just be consistent, honest about what actually happened each week, and don't let the online horror stories make you second-guess yourself. You've got this!