NY unemployment certification asking about break in claim that never happened - weird employer questions?

yep happened to me too last week! same exact thing, asked about a break and employer info that made no sense. i just put in my last employer's info and it went thru ok. got paid normal time.

This is actually a known issue with the NY unemployment system's 2025 update. When they migrated claims data in January, some accounts were flagged with an automatic 'break in claim' alert. The system thinks you stopped claiming and then restarted, even though you didn't. You should be fine if you just answered the questions with your most recent employer's information. Your payment might be delayed by 1-2 days while it goes through manual review, but it will process. If you don't receive your payment within 5 business days of certification, then you should contact them.

my sister got the same thing!! she said it was some kind of glitch but she got paid anyway just took an extra day

Did anyone else have this happen TWICE?? I got the break in claim questions two weeks in a row and I'm getting really nervous they're going to freeze my account or something. The second time I tried changing my answers thinking maybe I answered wrong the first time, but it still asked all the weird questions. Should I just keep certifying and hope for the best????

This happened to me but my payment got stuck in pending for 3 weeks!!! Had to call like 50 times. They said it was a system flag but I still don't understand why. Something about quarerly review??

I got something similar last year but it was asking about out of state employment which I never had. Turned out my identity was stolen and someone was trying to claim benefits in another state using my SSN. Might be worth checking your credit report just to be safe.

Just an update for anyone finding this thread later: NYSDOL acknowledged this as a system issue in their February 2025 update. They're working on fixing it, but in the meantime, you should: 1. Answer the break in claim questions with your most recent employer information 2. Continue certifying weekly as normal 3. Allow 3-5 business days for payment instead of the usual 1-2 days The system flag is automatically cleared after the first affected payment processes. If your payment doesn't arrive within 5 business days, then you should contact them for manual intervention.

hey does anybody know where to find your employer's EIN if you don't have it? my old boss won't answer my texts

This is super helpful to know it's a widespread issue! I was freaking out thinking I somehow messed up my claim. Just got hit with the same "break in claim" questions today even though I've been certifying every week since I started my claim in December. The system asked for my return to work date (which doesn't exist) and employer EIN. I ended up putting my last employer's info like others suggested. Fingers crossed my payment goes through in the next few days. Really wish NYSDOL would put up a notice about this glitch on their website so people don't panic!

Same thing happened to me yesterday! I've been certifying weekly since November with no issues, then boom - suddenly it's asking about a break in my claim and wanting employer info. I was so confused because I never stopped certifying. Glad to see from the comments that this is a known system glitch and not something I did wrong. I put in my last employer's EIN like everyone suggested, so hopefully my payment will just be delayed a few days instead of completely messed up. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences - makes me feel way less anxious about it!

This just happened to me too! I was so relieved to find this thread because I thought I had somehow screwed up my claim. Been certifying every single week since October without any issues, then yesterday it hit me with all these questions about a "break in claim" that never happened. It wanted my return to work date and employer EIN - I was like, what return to work date?? I'm still unemployed! I ended up putting in my last employer's info like everyone else suggested. Really hoping my payment just gets delayed a few days and doesn't cause any bigger problems. It's crazy that NYSDOL hasn't fixed this glitch or at least posted something on their website about it. Would have saved me hours of stress yesterday thinking I'd messed something up! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - makes me feel so much better knowing it's not just me.

Just wanted to add my experience to help others who might find this thread - I got hit with the same "break in claim" questions last week even though I've been certifying consistently since January. The system asked for employer info that made no sense since I haven't returned to work. I was panicking until I found this discussion! I followed everyone's advice and entered my last employer's EIN when prompted. My payment came through after 4 days instead of the usual next-day deposit, so it worked out fine. It's really frustrating that NYSDOL hasn't communicated about this system glitch - would save so many people the stress and confusion. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences here, it really helped calm my nerves!

This exact same thing just happened to me this week! I've been consistently certifying every Sunday since I started my claim in January, and suddenly this week the system started asking me about a "break in claim" and wanted my employer's EIN. I was so confused because there was no break - I haven't missed a single week of certification! Reading through all these comments is such a huge relief. I was worried I had somehow messed up my claim or that there was fraud on my account. I ended up entering my most recent employer's information like everyone else suggested. Hopefully my payment will just be delayed a few days instead of causing bigger issues. It's really frustrating that this is such a widespread problem but NYSDOL hasn't posted anything about it on their website. A simple notice would prevent so much unnecessary panic for people who are already stressed about being unemployed. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread has been incredibly helpful!

This just happened to me too! I've been certifying weekly since December without any problems, then today I got blindsided with questions about a "break in claim" that definitely didn't happen. The system wanted my return to work date and employer EIN - I'm like, I'm still unemployed, what return to work date?? I was starting to freak out thinking I'd somehow screwed up my claim. Finding this thread has been such a relief - knowing it's a widespread system glitch and not something I did wrong. I entered my last employer's info like everyone else suggested, so fingers crossed my payment just gets delayed a few days. Really wish NYSDOL would acknowledge this issue publicly instead of leaving everyone to figure it out on their own!