How much can you make while on unemployment in NY without losing benefits?
I just started collecting unemployment but got offered some part-time freelance work. I'm worried about messing up my benefits. Does anyone know exactly how much you can earn while still getting your weekly unemployment payment from NYS Department of Labor? I don't want to risk losing everything but could really use the extra income. My weekly benefit amount is $365 if that matters.
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Samantha Howard
You can earn up to 25% of your weekly benefit rate without any reduction in your unemployment payment. In your case, that would be about $91 per week. Anything over that amount gets deducted dollar-for-dollar from your weekly benefit. So if you earn $150, you'd lose $59 from your unemployment check. You still need to report ALL earnings when you file your weekly claim.
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Benjamin Kim
•Thanks! So I can make up to $91 and still get my full $365? That's actually pretty good. Do I report this on the weekly certification?
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Megan D'Acosta
wait i thought it was different than that?? i've been scared to take any work because someone told me you lose everything if you work at all
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Sarah Ali
•No, that's not correct. NYS Department of Labor actually encourages part-time work while on unemployment. The 25% rule is designed to help people transition back to full employment. You just need to be honest about your earnings and availability for work.
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Ryan Vasquez
I had so much trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to ask about this exact question! The phone lines are always busy and when I finally got through they hung up on me twice. Super frustrating when you just need a simple answer about work rules.
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Avery Saint
•I used claimyr.com to get through to an actual NYS Department of Labor agent about my earnings questions. They have this system that calls you back when an agent is available instead of waiting on hold forever. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of calling and getting disconnected.
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Ryan Vasquez
•That actually sounds really helpful! I'll check it out because I have more questions about job search requirements too.
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Taylor Chen
Just make sure you're still actively looking for full-time work and available for full-time employment. The part-time work can't interfere with your job search requirements or they could question your continued eligibility. Document everything in case they audit your claim later.
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Keith Davidson
yeah I learned this the hard way when I took a weekend gig and forgot to report it... ended up with an overpayment notice months later
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Brandon Parker
This is really helpful info! I'm in a similar situation and was confused about the rules. One thing I want to add - make sure you report your earnings for the week you actually perform the work, not when you get paid. I made that mistake early on and it caused some confusion with my claim. The NYS DOL website has a good FAQ section about partial unemployment that breaks down all the scenarios if you want more details.
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Camila Castillo
•That's a really important distinction about reporting earnings for when you work vs when you get paid! I almost made that same mistake. Thanks for mentioning the FAQ section too - I'll definitely check that out for more details about my specific freelance situation.
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Libby Hassan
One more thing to keep in mind - if your freelance work is inconsistent week to week, you'll need to report different amounts each time you certify. I do some consulting work and some weeks I earn $50, other weeks $120. Just be prepared for your unemployment payment to fluctuate accordingly. Also, save all your records of what you earned and when you worked because NYS DOL can ask for documentation during their periodic reviews. Better to be over-prepared than scrambling to find paperwork later!
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