Does unemployment affect snap benefits - NYS Department of Labor question
I'm currently receiving unemployment benefits through NYS Department of Labor and wondering if this will mess up my SNAP benefits? My case worker at the local office mentioned something about reporting changes but I'm not sure what that means exactly. I'm getting $420/week in UI and my SNAP is about $280/month. Will they reduce my food stamps because of the unemployment money? Really stressed about losing benefits right now since I've been out of work for 6 weeks.
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Ethan Moore
Yes, you need to report your unemployment income to SNAP immediately. Unemployment counts as income for SNAP calculations, so your benefits will likely be adjusted. The good news is you won't lose SNAP entirely - they'll just recalculate based on your new total income. Make sure to report within 10 days of receiving your first UI payment to avoid any overpayment issues.
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Aisha Ali
•Thanks for the info! Do you know if they count the full $420 or is there some kind of deduction they use?
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Yuki Nakamura
I had this same situation last year when I was getting unemployment. My SNAP went from $194 to $89 per month but at least I didn't lose it completely. Just call your local SNAP office and report the unemployment income - they'll walk you through it.
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StarSurfer
The key thing is to report it right away. SNAP uses gross income for calculations, so yes they'll count the full unemployment amount. But depending on your household size and other expenses, you should still qualify for some SNAP benefits. If you're having trouble getting through to your caseworker, you can also report income changes online through the NY myBenefits portal.
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Carmen Reyes
•Wait, I thought unemployment was tax-free for SNAP purposes? Or am I thinking of something else?
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StarSurfer
•No, unemployment definitely counts as income for SNAP. You might be thinking of certain one-time payments or maybe mixing it up with how unemployment is treated for other programs.
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Andre Moreau
One thing that helped me when dealing with multiple benefit programs was using Claimyr to get through to NYS Department of Labor when I had questions about how my UI might affect other benefits. Their site is claimyr.com and they have a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. I was able to speak with an actual NYS Department of Labor agent who confirmed exactly how much I needed to report to SNAP.
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Aisha Ali
•Interesting, never heard of that service. Did they charge you to make the call?
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Andre Moreau
•Yeah there's a fee but honestly it was worth it to get accurate info instead of guessing. The wait times to reach NYS Department of Labor directly were insane.
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Zoe Christodoulou
ugh the whole system is so confusing!! why can't they just coordinate between programs instead of making us report the same info to everyone separately
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Jamal Thompson
Just wanted to add that when you report to SNAP, make sure you have your unemployment award letter from NYS Department of Labor handy. They'll want to see the official documentation showing your weekly benefit amount. Also keep track of any weeks you don't claim unemployment since that will affect your SNAP calculation too.
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