One thing to add that I learned the hard way - make sure you request a "Status of Account" letter from NYS DOL before you file your final paperwork. This will show if there are any outstanding issues, penalties, or audits pending that could complicate your closure. I thought I was all set to close my account but discovered I had an old wage discrepancy they wanted to review first. It delayed my closure by about 6 weeks while we sorted it out. Better to catch these things upfront rather than after you've already shut down operations. You can request this through their business services line, though as others mentioned, getting through can be challenging.

I went through this exact process when I closed my retail store two years ago. Here's what I wish someone had told me from the start: 1) Request that Status of Account letter Marcus mentioned ASAP - do this before you even set your final closing date. 2) File your final NYS-45 quarterly report within 30 days of your last day of operations. 3) Send written notice to NYS DOL with your final operation date and confirmation you have no remaining employees. 4) Pay any outstanding contributions and file all final wage reports. 5) Don't forget to cancel workers' comp and disability insurance policies separately. The whole process took about 10-12 weeks for me, and yes, they do keep your account liable for potential claims for up to 18 months after closure. I kept getting notices for about a year afterward, but most were just routine correspondence. Pro tip: call their business line first thing in the morning (8 AM sharp) - that's when I had the best luck getting through to an actual person.

just be prepared for the system to be confusing AF. I applied last month and spent forever trying to figure out what they meant by 'base period' and why my claim was pending for adjudication. turns out I had to verify my identity through ID.me which took another week. the whole process is way more complicated than it should be

One thing to keep in mind is that partial unemployment might be an option for you since your hours got cut rather than being completely laid off. NYS allows you to collect partial benefits if you're working reduced hours, as long as you earn less than your weekly benefit rate. You'd report your earnings each week and they'll reduce your benefit accordingly, but you could still get some assistance. This might be worth looking into since you mentioned your hours were cut to "practically nothing" rather than being completely unemployed. Just make sure to report all earnings honestly when you file your weekly claims.

This thread is giving me life! 🙌 I've been stuck in this same hellish loop since late June and was starting to lose my mind. Reading everyone's strategies and success stories is exactly what I needed. I'm going to try the Thursday 7:58 AM approach with two phones, and if that doesn't work I'll definitely look into the callback feature and Spanish line workaround. It's absolutely insane that we have to become strategic masterminds just to access our own unemployment benefits, but I'm grateful for this community sharing what actually works. The fact that multiple people have mentioned once you get through they're actually helpful gives me hope! Thanks everyone for not giving up and sharing your experiences - we shouldn't have to deal with this broken system but at least we're figuring it out together! 💪

I've been dealing with this exact nightmare since mid-July and finally had a breakthrough last week! What worked for me was combining several strategies from this thread: I called the main line at exactly 8:02 AM on a Tuesday (waited 2 minutes after opening to avoid the initial rush), used my cell phone and had my partner call simultaneously on their phone, and we both kept hitting redial for about 30 minutes straight. The key was having backup - when my call finally went through to the hold music, my partner hung up their attempt. I waited on hold for another 45 minutes but actually got a real person who was super helpful and resolved my claim issues in one call! Also want to echo what others said about persistence - I probably called 200+ times over 3 months before this worked. The system is absolutely broken and it shouldn't be this hard, but don't lose hope. Document everything, try different times/days, and consider reaching out to your local representative if all else fails. You've got this! 🙏

just wanted to say hang in there - the waiting is the worst part but once you start getting payments it's much smoother sailing

I went through this exact same situation last month! The retroactive payments are definitely the best part - you'll get all those weeks you were waiting during adjudication. In my case, I got about 4 weeks of back payments all at once, which was a huge relief. Just be patient with that first deposit, it might take a few extra days because they're processing multiple weeks. After that, the weekly payments come much more regularly. You're through the hardest part now!

Just wanted to add that you should definitely report the settlement when you file. I know someone who didn't mention their workers comp settlement and got hit with an overpayment notice months later. NYS Department of Labor eventually finds out about these things through data matching.

I went through something similar last year with a shoulder injury settlement. The key thing I learned is that NYS Department of Labor will want to see a breakdown of your settlement showing what portion was for past lost wages vs future wages vs medical expenses. If your settlement agreement doesn't specify this breakdown, you might need to contact your workers comp attorney to get a clarification letter. In my case, most of my settlement was for medical expenses and past wages, so it didn't affect my weekly UI benefit amount. The process took about 4-6 weeks for them to review everything, but I was eventually approved. Make sure you're actively job searching and document everything - they'll ask for proof that you're looking for work within your physical restrictions.