been there! the commute distance thing is real - they can't force you to take a job that requires more than a reasonable commute time or cost

From my experience dealing with NYS DOL, the 80% rule that AstroAce mentioned is correct for the first 10 weeks. But there's also a "prevailing wage" consideration - if similar jobs in your area typically pay much less than what you were making, they might argue that the lower wage is reasonable sooner. For the commute issue, generally anything over 1 hour each way or that costs more than 10% of your gross weekly benefit amount is considered unreasonable. I'd recommend calling your local career center to get clarification on your specific situation - they're usually more helpful than the main unemployment line. Keep detailed records of all job referrals and your responses in case you need to appeal any decisions later.

I always certify on Wednesday afternoons around 2-3pm and never have any problems. Most people probably do it on weekends so weekdays are way better

I usually certify on Tuesday evenings around 7-8pm and it's been pretty smooth. The system seems less congested then compared to Sunday mornings. One tip I learned is to have all your work search information ready beforehand - employer names, contact info, dates you applied, etc. It makes the whole process much faster and reduces the chance of timing out while you're looking up information.

ny unemployment stay making everything complicated asf. but yea just file now and worry about the details later

Been through this exact situation! File immediately - don't wait for the severance to end. When you're doing your weekly certification, just report the severance payments honestly. The system will automatically calculate how it affects your benefits. The key thing is getting your claim date established ASAP because that's when your benefit year starts. Even if you don't get payments right away due to severance, you'll be in the system and ready to go once it runs out.

Just wanted to chime in as someone who works in unemployment advocacy - what you're experiencing is becoming quite common in NY this year. The NYSDOL has been processing a lot of delayed wage reports from employers, especially from Q4 2024, which can trigger automatic benefit recalculations even mid-claim. The key thing to watch for is whether your weekly benefit amount changed along with the maximum. If both increased, it's almost certainly a legitimate wage-based recalculation. If only the maximum increased, it could be either a duration extension or a base period adjustment. Either way, definitely keep those screenshots and continue certifying. The system errors that result in clawbacks are usually much more obvious (like sudden massive increases that don't make mathematical sense). A $1,800 increase over 15 weeks is totally reasonable for a wage adjustment scenario.

I just wanted to add my experience to help others who might be worried about this. The same thing happened to me about 6 weeks ago - my maximum went up by around $2,100. I was terrified it was an error after reading horror stories online, but I decided to call and verify. It took me 3 days of calling to get through, but the agent confirmed it was legitimate - they had received late wage information from one of my previous employers that qualified me for a higher benefit calculation. The agent also told me something important: if you're concerned about whether an increase is legitimate, you can request a written explanation of the adjustment through your online account message system. They're supposed to provide documentation showing how they calculated the new amount. I did this and got a detailed breakdown within about 10 days that showed exactly which employer wages were added and how it affected my weekly and maximum amounts. For anyone still worried - keep certifying as normal, take screenshots, and if you're really concerned, request that written explanation. Don't let anxiety stop you from collecting benefits you're entitled to!

Just file online and see what happens. The worst they can do is deny it and then you can appeal if needed.

I went through this same situation last year - filed a new claim about 8 months after my previous one ended. The key thing is having enough work history between claims like others mentioned. When you file online at labor.ny.gov, the system will automatically check if you meet the wage requirements. If you worked full-time at your new job for several months, you should be fine. Just make sure to have your employment dates and wage information ready when you apply. The whole process was pretty straightforward for me once I had all the documentation together.