How long after can you apply for unemployment with NYS Department of Labor?
I got laid off from my job three weeks ago and I'm just now thinking about filing for unemployment benefits. I've been putting it off because I thought I might find something quickly but no luck so far. Is there a deadline for how long after you lose your job you can still apply with NYS Department of Labor? I'm worried I might have missed some kind of window and won't be able to get benefits at all. Can you still file a claim if it's been a few weeks since your last day of work?
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Brianna Muhammad
You can definitely still file! There's no specific deadline but you should apply as soon as possible. NYS Department of Labor benefits start from the week you file your claim, not from when you lost your job. So the longer you wait, the more potential benefits you're missing out on. You'll need to file your initial claim online and then start filing weekly claims immediately.
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Camila Castillo
•Thank you! So I won't get paid for the three weeks I already missed? That's a lot of money I could have had.
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JaylinCharles
yeah file asap!! i waited like 6 weeks and lost out on so much money its not even funny
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Eloise Kendrick
The waiting period is different from the application deadline. You have up to one year from your separation date to file for unemployment benefits in New York, but your benefit year starts from when you actually file the claim. So if you file today, your first payable week would be this week, not retroactive to when you lost your job. The sooner you file, the sooner you can start receiving payments.
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Lucas Schmidt
•Wait, so there IS a one year deadline? I thought you could file anytime. What happens if you try to file after a year?
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Eloise Kendrick
•After one year from your separation date, you generally can't establish a new claim based on that job loss. You'd need new qualifying wages from recent work to be eligible for a new claim.
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Freya Collins
I had the same situation last year - lost my job and didn't apply right away because I was confident I'd find work quickly. Big mistake! I ended up struggling to get through to NYS Department of Labor when I finally tried to call with questions. The phone lines are always jammed and you get disconnected constantly. What finally worked for me was using a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me actually connect with an agent. They have this video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of frustration trying to get answers about my claim.
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LongPeri
•Never heard of that service before. Did they charge you a lot to help with the call?
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Freya Collins
•It was worth it just to avoid the endless busy signals and getting hung up on. Way better than spending entire days trying to get through on my own.
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Oscar O'Neil
The NYS Department of Labor system is so backwards! Why don't they make this information clearer on their website? I've been unemployed for two months and just found out about weekly claims last week. How are people supposed to know all these rules?
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JaylinCharles
just go to my.ny.gov and start the application process, dont overthink it. you answer questions about your last job and they tell you if you qualify
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