NY unemployment forfeit days penalty - do I still claim weekly benefits?

YES, you absolutely need to keep certifying every week! Forfeit days are basically a penalty where you won't get paid for a certain number of days you'd otherwise be eligible. If you have 18 forfeit days, that's roughly 3.5 weeks where you'll certify but not get paid. But after those days are used up, you'll start getting paid again - but ONLY if you've been consistently certifying the whole time. If you stop certifying, you'll lose those benefits permanently.

Thanks for explaining! So even though I'm getting $0 right now I should still do the weekly thing? That's really frustrating but I guess it makes sense. Do you know if the website will tell me when my forfeit days are used up?

i got hit with this last yr. its a pain but keep claiming! mine was 24 days and took almost a month before i saw $$$ again

A whole month?? That's gonna be tough... Did they at least tell you when the forfeit period was over? Or did you just suddenly start getting payments again?

The system is designed to be confusing. They WANT you to stop certifying so they don't have to pay you. KEEP CERTIFYING EVERY WEEK! The forfeit days are calculated based on your weekly benefit amount - each forfeit

this happened to my roommate and he didnt certify for 2 weeks thinking whats the point...ended up having to file a whole new claim and lost like 6 weeks of payments. system is rigged

That's really helpful, thank you! I had no idea about the 1/5 calculation. Based on my weekly amount, I can figure out exactly when I'll start getting paid again. You're right, it does feel like they make it confusing on purpose...

I spent 3 HOURS trying to get through to someone at unemployment when I had forfeit days last year. IMPOSSIBLE to reach a human being! Then I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 20 minutes. Totally worth it because the agent explained exactly how my forfeit days worked and when I would start getting paid again. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE and their website is claimyr.com if you're desperate to talk to someone. Saved me so much stress!

I might check that out because I really need to talk to someone who can explain my specific situation. The determination letter wasn't clear about when exactly the forfeit period ends. Thanks for the recommendation!

Be careful with services like that. They can't do anything you can't do yourself if you're persistent enough. Just keep calling the unemployment office yourself.

I'm dealing with forfeit days too! Mine was because I apparently underreported some income from a side gig in 2024. Such a headache because I thought I reported everything correctly. My question is - does anyone know if the forfeit days affect your total benefit amount? Like, do they just delay payment or do you actually lose those weeks of benefits entirely?

You actually lose those weeks of benefits completely. The forfeit days are a penalty, not just a delay. If you have 26 weeks of benefits available but get hit with 20 forfeit days (4 weeks), you'll ultimately only receive 22 weeks of payments. It's basically a financial penalty for what they determined was misreporting, whether intentional or accidental.

One more thing to be aware of: document EVERYTHING. Print out and save your weekly certifications during the forfeit period. The NY unemployment system sometimes has

That's a good point about documenting everything. I'll start taking screenshots of my certifications. The determination letter said the reason was that I didn't report some freelance work I did in January 2025, but honestly I did report it - I think they just processed something wrong. Is it worth appealing? I'm worried that might just make everything take longer.

dont even get me started on forfeit days lol. the whole unemployment system is garbage. i swear they make everything complicated on purpose. my cousin had like 40 forfeit days and basically just gave up and found another job cuz it was such a hassle

same!! my brother in law just said forget it and went back to doordash. cant blame him tbh

To answer your question about whether the website tells you when forfeit days are used up: Unfortunately, the NY unemployment system doesn't make this clear. You'll likely just see your payment status change from $0.00 to your regular benefit amount once the forfeit period is over. That's why it's crucial to keep track yourself.\n\nCalculate exactly when your forfeit period should end (18 days = 3.6 weeks, so basically 4 certification periods) and mark it on your calendar. Keep certifying, and if you don't start receiving payments after your calculated end date, that's when you need to contact DOL directly.

Thanks for the clarification! I'll definitely keep track myself. My regular weekly benefit is $543, so I'm looking at almost a month without income. Definitely going to be tight but at least there's an end date I can count down to.

After your forfeit days are used up and you start receiving benefits again, make absolutely certain that your weekly certifications are 100% accurate going forward. The system flags accounts that have had prior issues, and second offenses typically result in much harsher penalties, including permanent disqualification from benefits.\n\nIf you're doing any side work or gig jobs while collecting, report every single dollar. It's better to have your weekly benefit reduced than to face more forfeit days or worse penalties.

That's really good advice, thank you. I'm definitely going to be extra careful with all my certifications going forward. This has been such a stressful experience that I never want to deal with forfeit days again!