How to cancel unemployment claim online through NYS Department of Labor website?
I need to cancel my unemployment claim because I just got hired for a full-time position starting next week. I've been looking everywhere on the my.ny.gov website but can't figure out how to actually cancel or close my claim online. I don't want to keep getting weekly claim certifications sent to me when I'm working. Has anyone successfully cancelled their NYS Department of Labor claim through the website? I tried calling but the wait times are insane.
28 comments


Olivia Martinez
Congratulations on the new job! You don't actually 'cancel' your unemployment claim - you just stop filing your weekly claims. Once you stop certifying, your claim will automatically become inactive. However, you should call NYS Department of Labor to report your return to work date for their records. The claim stays open for one year in case you need to reactivate it.
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Lucas Kowalski
•Thank you! So I just ignore the weekly certification reminders? I was worried they'd think I was committing fraud or something if I didn't respond.
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Charlie Yang
Actually there IS a way to formally close it online. Log into your my.ny.gov account, go to the unemployment services section, and look for 'Report Return to Work' or something similar. I did this last month when I started my new job. It sends a notification to NYS Department of Labor that you're employed again.
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Grace Patel
•I looked for that option everywhere and couldn't find it. Are you sure it exists? I ended up just calling and waiting 2 hours to speak to someone.
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ApolloJackson
omg the phone system is the WORST. I've been trying to reach someone at NYS Department of Labor for weeks about my claim and keep getting disconnected. If anyone knows a better way to get through please let me know because this is ridiculous!!!
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Isabella Russo
•I had the same problem until someone told me about claimyr.com - it's a service that calls NYS Department of Labor for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. I was skeptical but it actually got me through in like 30 minutes instead of hours of busy signals.
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ApolloJackson
•Is that legit? I'm desperate enough to try anything at this point. The automated system just hangs up on me every time.
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Rajiv Kumar
honestly just stop filing the weekly claims and you'll be fine. i got a job 3 months ago and never formally 'cancelled' anything. they stopped sending me the reminders after like 4-5 weeks of not filing.
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Aria Washington
Wait I'm confused - if you stop filing doesn't that mess up your work search requirements? I thought you had to keep doing the job search stuff even if you found work until you officially closed the claim?
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Olivia Martinez
•No, once you return to work you don't need to meet job search requirements anymore. The work search requirement is only for weeks when you're claiming benefits. If you're not filing weekly claims, those requirements don't apply.
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Luca Marino
I just went through this exact same situation last month! @Charlie Yang is right - there IS a way to report your return to work online, but it's buried pretty deep in the my.ny.gov site. After you log in, go to Unemployment Services, then look for "Manage My Claim" or "Claim Status" - there should be an option to report employment status changes. It took me forever to find it too. If you can't locate it, definitely try the claimyr service that @Isabella Russo mentioned - I've heard good things about it from other people dealing with NYS Department of Labor phone issues. Congrats on the new job!
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Andre Dupont
•Thanks for the detailed directions @Luca Marino! I've been struggling with this too and your step-by-step instructions are super helpful. I'm going to try logging in tonight and following that path through "Manage My Claim" - hopefully I can finally get this sorted out without having to deal with the phone system nightmare everyone's talking about.
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Chris King
I work for a local employment agency and deal with NYS Department of Labor issues regularly. Here's what I tell all my clients: you should definitely report your return to work to avoid any potential overpayment issues down the line. The easiest way is through the my.ny.gov portal - log in and look for "Report Work and Earnings" under your unemployment dashboard. This formally notifies them of your employment status change. Even if you just stop filing weekly claims, it's better to have it officially documented that you returned to work on a specific date. This protects you if there are ever any questions about benefit eligibility periods later. The system can be glitchy sometimes, so if the online option doesn't work, that claimyr service others mentioned is actually legitimate - I've recommended it to clients who couldn't get through by phone.
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Evan Kalinowski
•This is really helpful @Chris King! I'm actually in a similar situation - just accepted a job offer and want to make sure I handle the unemployment claim properly. I found the "Report Work and Earnings" section you mentioned and it was exactly where you said it would be. For anyone else looking, it's right on the main unemployment dashboard after you log into my.ny.gov. Thanks for the professional insight about documenting the return-to-work date - I hadn't thought about potential overpayment issues but that makes total sense to have it officially on record.
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Natasha Volkova
I just went through this exact process two weeks ago! @Chris King and @Luca Marino gave great advice. I found the "Report Work and Earnings" section after logging into my.ny.gov and it was super straightforward once I located it. One tip - make sure you have your exact start date and employer information ready when you fill it out. After I submitted it, I got a confirmation email from NYS Department of Labor within 24 hours acknowledging my return to work status. The weekly certification reminders stopped automatically after that. Definitely worth taking the few minutes to do it officially rather than just stopping the weekly claims - gives you peace of mind that everything is properly documented. Good luck with the new job @Lucas Kowalski!
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Zara Ahmed
•This whole thread has been super helpful! I'm actually starting a new job next Monday and was panicking about how to handle my unemployment claim properly. @Natasha Volkova thanks for mentioning the confirmation email - that s'exactly the kind of documentation I was hoping to get. It s'reassuring to know that NYS Department of Labor actually responds quickly when you use the online system correctly. I m'going to log into my.ny.gov tonight and look for that Report "Work and Earnings section." Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences here - makes this whole process way less stressful when you know what to expect!
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Genevieve Cavalier
Just wanted to add my experience - I was in the same boat a few months ago and was really worried about doing this wrong. I ended up using the "Report Work and Earnings" option that several people mentioned, and it worked perfectly. The key thing I learned is that you want to report your FIRST day of work, not your last day of unemployment benefits. So if you're starting Monday, report Monday as your return-to-work date. Also, don't stress too much about the weekly certifications - once you submit the return-to-work form, NYS Department of Labor updates your account status and the reminders will stop coming. The whole online process took me maybe 5 minutes once I found the right section. Much easier than dealing with their phone system! Congrats on landing the new position!
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Nia Wilson
•Thank you so much @Genevieve Cavalier! That's a really important distinction about reporting the FIRST day of work vs the last day of benefits - I definitely would have gotten that wrong. I'm starting my new job this coming Wednesday, so I'll make sure to put Wednesday as my return-to-work date when I fill out the form. It's such a relief to know the whole process only takes about 5 minutes once you find the right section. I was dreading having to spend hours on hold with NYS Department of Labor! Thanks to everyone in this thread for sharing such detailed experiences - you've all made this way less intimidating for those of us going through it for the first time.
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Caleb Bell
I went through this same situation about 6 months ago and want to echo what others have said about using the official "Report Work and Earnings" feature. After reading through all these responses, I realize I made it way harder than it needed to be! I initially just stopped filing weekly claims and worried for weeks that I was doing something wrong. When I finally found the proper reporting section on my.ny.gov (thanks to advice similar to what @Chris King and others shared here), it gave me so much peace of mind. The confirmation process is quick and you get that email verification that everything is properly documented with NYS Department of Labor. For anyone still searching for it - after logging in, look under your unemployment dashboard for anything related to "earnings" or "employment status" reporting. Different people seem to see slightly different menu layouts, but it's definitely there. Best of luck to everyone transitioning back to work - it's such a good problem to have!
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Malik Davis
•@Caleb Bell you re'so right about it being such "a good problem to have! I" m'in the exact same boat right now - just accepted a job offer yesterday and was stressing about how to handle my unemployment claim properly. Reading through everyone s'experiences here has been incredibly reassuring. I had no idea there was an official Report "Work and Earnings section" - I was definitely planning to just stop filing weekly claims and hope for the best! It s'amazing how much anxiety you can save yourself by just taking 5 minutes to do it the right way. Going to log into my.ny.gov tonight and get this sorted out before I start work on Monday. Thanks to everyone who shared their step-by-step experiences - this community is awesome!
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Mohamed Anderson
I just want to thank everyone who contributed to this thread! I was in panic mode earlier today thinking I'd have to spend my entire weekend on hold with NYS Department of Labor, but thanks to all your detailed guidance I was able to find and complete the "Report Work and Earnings" form in under 10 minutes. For anyone else looking - it's exactly where @Chris King, @Luca Marino, and others said it would be on the my.ny.gov unemployment dashboard. I got the confirmation email within an hour of submitting it, so the system definitely works! Starting my new position Monday morning and it feels so good to have this properly documented with NYS Department of Labor. This community really came through with practical, step-by-step help when I needed it most. Hoping this thread helps other people in the same situation!
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Sofia Torres
•@Mohamed Anderson I m'so glad this thread worked out for you! I just stumbled across this discussion while searching for the exact same information - I start my new job on Thursday and was completely lost on how to properly close out my unemployment claim with NYS Department of Labor. Reading through everyone s'experiences has been a lifesaver! It s'incredible how many people have gone through this exact situation and were willing to share their step-by-step process. I m'definitely going to follow the advice about finding the Report "Work and Earnings section" on my.ny.gov rather than just hoping for the best by stopping my weekly claims. Thanks to you and everyone else who documented their experience - it makes such a difference for newcomers like me who are navigating this for the first time!
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Talia Klein
I'm so grateful I found this thread! I just accepted a job offer this morning and was completely panicking about how to handle my unemployment claim properly. Reading through everyone's detailed experiences has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea there was an official "Report Work and Earnings" section on my.ny.gov. I was definitely going to make the mistake of just stopping my weekly claims and hoping that was enough! Thanks especially to @Chris King for the professional insight about avoiding overpayment issues, and to @Genevieve Cavalier for the tip about reporting the FIRST day of work rather than the last day of benefits. I'm starting my new position next Tuesday, so I'll be logging into my.ny.gov this weekend to find that reporting section and get everything properly documented with NYS Department of Labor. It's such a relief to know this whole process only takes a few minutes once you know where to look. This community has saved me so much stress and probably hours on hold! Fingers crossed I can find the form as easily as everyone described.
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Nia Thompson
•@Talia Klein Congratulations on the new job! You re'going to do great finding that Report "Work and Earnings section" - everyone s'directions have been spot-on. I just went through this process last week after reading through all these helpful responses. One small tip that might save you a few minutes of searching: when you log into my.ny.gov, the unemployment dashboard sometimes takes a moment to fully load all the options, so don t'panic if you don t'see the reporting section immediately. Give it 10-15 seconds and it should populate. Also, have your new employer s'information handy company (name, address, start date because) the form asks for those details. The whole thing really is as straightforward as everyone described once you find it. You ve'got this!
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Hugo Kass
This thread is amazing - thank you everyone for such detailed and helpful responses! I'm actually in the exact same situation as the original poster. I just got hired for a new position starting Monday and have been dreading the thought of calling NYS Department of Labor. After reading through all these experiences, I feel so much more confident about handling this properly. I'm going to follow the advice about logging into my.ny.gov and looking for the "Report Work and Earnings" section on the unemployment dashboard. It's really reassuring to know that so many people have successfully used this method and received confirmation emails from NYS Department of Labor. Thanks especially to everyone who shared the specific navigation steps - it makes all the difference when you're trying to find something on a government website! I'll report back on how it goes in case anyone else is in a similar situation.
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Asher Levin
•@Hugo Kass I m'in the exact same boat - just got a job offer yesterday and was dreading having to navigate this whole process! This thread has been such a goldmine of information. I was literally about to just stop filing weekly claims and cross my fingers, but now I know there s'a proper way to do it through the Report "Work and Earnings section." It s'so helpful to see that multiple people have confirmed this method works and that you actually get a confirmation email back from NYS Department of Labor. I m'starting my new job next week too, so I ll'definitely be following everyone s'step-by-step advice this weekend. Thanks to you and everyone else for creating such a comprehensive resource - it s'amazing how much stress this community has saved all of us newcomers!
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Molly Chambers
I just went through this exact process yesterday after reading through all these helpful comments! Following everyone's advice, I logged into my.ny.gov and found the "Report Work and Earnings" section right on the unemployment dashboard like @Chris King and @Luca Marino described. The form was super straightforward - just needed my new employer info and start date. Got the confirmation email from NYS Department of Labor this morning, so the system definitely works as advertised! For anyone still looking, it's under the main unemployment services area - took me about 3 minutes once I found it. Thanks to everyone who shared their step-by-step experiences here. This thread saved me hours of phone calls and a ton of anxiety. Starting my new job Monday and it feels great to have everything properly documented!
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Malik Thompson
•@Molly Chambers That s'awesome that you got it done so quickly! I m'literally about to do this right now after reading through everyone s'experiences. It s'so reassuring to hear that you got the confirmation email the very next morning - that s'exactly the kind of documentation I was hoping for. I was initially planning to just wing it and stop filing weekly claims, but after reading all these detailed responses I realize how important it is to properly report your return to work status with NYS Department of Labor. Thanks for confirming that the whole process really does only take a few minutes once you find the right section. Congrats on the new job and thanks for adding your successful experience to help the rest of us!
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