these fraud investigations are getting out of hand fr fr. my cousin got the same letter last week

Hey Yara, I went through something similar in 2020. The key thing is to stay calm and be organized. Even without your old passport, you should be fine with other forms of ID. I'd also suggest bringing any employment records you can find from 2019 - pay stubs, W2s, termination letters, anything that shows your work history. If you can't find those documents, your former employer might still have copies. The investigators are usually pretty reasonable if you're upfront about what happened and show you're trying to cooperate. Good luck! 🤞

You definitely need to request all the documentation related to your overpayment determination. Ask for copies of your weekly claim history, any employer responses to benefit charges, and the specific eligibility issue they're citing. Don't just accept the overpayment without understanding exactly what happened. Many times these can be successfully appealed if you have the right documentation.

I went through something similar last year and it turned out to be a clerical error on their end. The key thing is to NOT panic and definitely don't ignore the notice. Here's what I learned: 1) You have appeal rights - use them! 2) Request a waiver if you qualify (sometimes they'll waive collection if it wasn't your fault and repayment would cause hardship) 3) If you do owe money, they usually offer payment plans. The worst thing you can do is ignore it because then they can garnish wages or tax refunds. Document everything and keep copies of all correspondence. Good luck!

Check your claim status online - if it shows any kind of pending issue or adjudication in progress, that's what's holding up your payment. Also make sure you're not missing any required job search activities that could trigger a payment hold.

I went through the same thing a few months ago! The first payment is usually the slowest because they're still processing everything on the backend even though it shows "approved" online. Like others said, 2-3 business days after certification is normal, but the very first one can take up to a week. Don't panic yet - if you certified Sunday, give it until Friday before calling. One thing that helped me was setting up text alerts through my bank so I'd know immediately when the deposit hit instead of constantly checking my account.

just make sure u get a confirmation after u press 4. sometimes the system hangs up for no reason lol

Just wanted to add that you can also check your withholding status online through the NY DOL website if you're not sure what you selected. I logged into my account last week and could see under "Payment Information" whether I had tax withholding set up or not. It's a good way to double-check without having to call that awful phone system again. The online portal shows your payment history and tax withholding amounts too, which is helpful for keeping track.

I had trouble reaching NYS Department of Labor when my claim got stuck in adjudication for weeks. Calling their regular number was impossible - always busy or would hang up after being on hold forever. Someone here recommended Claimyr (claimyr.com) which helps you get through to actual agents. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Saved me weeks of frustration trying to get my claim resolved.

Just wanted to add that I've been hiring in HR for 8 years in NY and we absolutely cannot and do not check unemployment records - it's not even legally accessible to most employers. The only time unemployment might come up is if YOU mention it in an interview, and honestly most hiring managers understand that layoffs happen and it's not a reflection of your work quality. Your dad's advice comes from an older generation when there was more stigma, but that's really not the case anymore. File immediately and don't stress about it affecting future opportunities!