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!

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago! Had 21 forfeit days due to a reporting issue and I was panicking about whether to keep certifying. Definitely keep doing your weekly certifications - I cannot stress this enough. The forfeit days basically mean you're serving a "time penalty" where you won't get paid, but you're still using up your benefit weeks. Think of it like being benched from a sports game - you're still part of the team, just not getting to play (or in this case, get paid) for a set period. Once I got through my forfeit period, payments resumed automatically. The system doesn't really notify you clearly when it's over, so keep a calendar count like others suggested. Hang in there!

I'm in a similar boat right now - just got hit with 15 forfeit days for something from my initial application last year. Reading through all these responses is super helpful because I was definitely considering just stopping my weekly certifications since I'm getting $0 anyway. Sounds like that would be a huge mistake! Question for everyone who's been through this - did you still have to do the work search requirements during your forfeit period? My determination letter doesn't mention anything about that but I want to make sure I'm not missing something that could cause even more problems.

Just wanted to add my experience since I see a lot of good info here already. I had 12 forfeit days last year and made the mistake of not keeping detailed records like some people mentioned. When my payments resumed, there was actually a glitch in the system that showed I had missed a certification (even though I hadn't), and it took weeks to straighten out. My advice: not only keep certifying every week during your forfeit period, but also take screenshots of your confirmation pages AND print them out if possible. The NY system can be really glitchy and having physical proof saved me when I had to prove I'd been certifying consistently. Also, if you're doing any kind of part-time or gig work during this time, be extra careful about reporting it accurately - they're definitely watching accounts that have had issues more closely. Good luck getting through this, it's frustrating but you'll make it to the other side!

I'm currently dealing with forfeit days too and this thread has been incredibly helpful! I got hit with 14 forfeit days for what they claim was unreported income from some freelance work I did last spring. The whole situation is so stressful because you're already struggling financially and then they basically punish you by withholding payments for weeks. What really gets me is how unclear their determination letters are - mine barely explained the calculation or timeline. I've been certifying every week since getting the notice (this is week 2 for me) and documenting everything like people suggested here. One thing I'm curious about - has anyone successfully appealed forfeit days? I'm pretty sure I reported that income correctly but I'm scared that appealing might just make things worse or take even longer. The whole system feels designed to discourage you from fighting back.

I'm in week 3 of my own forfeit days nightmare right now (got hit with 20 days for "failure to report wages" even though I swear I did everything right). This whole thread has been a lifesaver because the anxiety of certifying every week for $0 was really getting to me. I was starting to think maybe I should just give up and look for work instead, but now I understand I need to stick it out. What's really helping me cope is treating it like a countdown - I made a calendar and I'm literally crossing off each day until I hit my estimated end date. It's still frustrating as hell to be broke for almost a month, but at least now I know there's light at the end of the tunnel. For anyone else going through this - we got this! Keep certifying no matter how pointless it feels.

I'm going through this exact situation right now and honestly, this thread has been more helpful than anything I could find on the official NY unemployment website! Just got my determination letter yesterday saying I have 22 forfeit days for allegedly not reporting some gig work from last year (which I'm pretty sure I DID report correctly, but whatever). The whole thing is so overwhelming - you're already stressed about money and then they basically say "surprise, no income for a month!" Reading everyone's experiences here though, I'm definitely going to keep doing my weekly certifications religiously and document everything. The countdown calendar idea is genius, I'm starting that today. It's reassuring to know that payments do eventually resume if you stick with the process. Thanks to everyone for sharing their stories - knowing I'm not alone in dealing with this bureaucratic nightmare makes it a little easier to handle.

I'm currently in week 1 of 16 forfeit days and honestly was panicking about whether to keep certifying since I'm getting nothing right now. This thread has been incredibly reassuring - sounds like everyone who stuck with the weekly certifications eventually got their payments back once the forfeit period ended. I'm definitely going to follow everyone's advice here: keep certifying religiously, document everything with screenshots, maintain work search requirements, and create that countdown calendar. It's frustrating that the system makes this so confusing and stressful, but knowing there's an actual end date helps. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - it really helps to know we're all dealing with this together and that there IS light at the end of the tunnel if we just push through these next few weeks!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now - got hit with 24 forfeit days last week and I was so confused about whether to keep certifying! Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful and honestly a huge relief. I was getting really stressed thinking I was just wasting my time doing weekly certifications for $0, but it sounds like everyone who stuck with it eventually got their payments resumed. The countdown calendar idea is brilliant - I'm definitely going to set that up today so I can visualize the light at the end of the tunnel. It's so frustrating that the official NY unemployment website doesn't explain any of this clearly, but thankfully this community has all the real answers. Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences - knowing I'm not alone in dealing with this bureaucratic nightmare makes it so much more manageable!

I'm dealing with this exact situation right now too - just got hit with 12 forfeit days for some income reporting issue from my 2024 claim. This thread has been a lifesaver because I was literally about to stop doing my weekly certifications since I'm getting $0 anyway! Sounds like that would have been a huge mistake based on everyone's experiences here. I'm definitely going to keep certifying religiously and start that countdown calendar idea - 12 days means I'm looking at about 2.5 weeks of no payments but at least there's an actual end date I can work toward. It's so frustrating that the NY unemployment system makes this process so confusing and stressful, but reading everyone's stories gives me hope that if I just stick with it, payments will resume once the forfeit period is over. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - knowing we're all in this together makes it feel way more manageable!

I'm currently on day 5 of my own 15 forfeit days penalty and this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I was starting to panic about whether I should keep certifying every week when I'm literally getting $0, but reading everyone's experiences here has given me the confidence to stick with it. The countdown calendar idea is genius - I just set one up and it already makes this feel more manageable knowing there's exactly 10 days left until I should start seeing payments again. What's really helping me mentally is thinking of this like everyone said - it's basically serving a penalty period, not a permanent loss of benefits. I'm being extra careful to document everything with screenshots and keeping up with work search requirements. It's so frustrating that the NY system doesn't explain any of this clearly in their determination letters, but thankfully we have this community to figure it out together. To everyone else going through forfeit days right now - we're all in this together and there IS light at the end of the tunnel!

I'm just starting week 1 of my own 19 forfeit days and this entire thread has been a godsend! I was honestly considering just giving up on the weekly certifications since getting $0 every week felt so pointless, but reading everyone's experiences has made it crystal clear that I need to stick with it no matter what. The countdown calendar idea that keeps coming up sounds perfect - I'm going to set that up today so I can visually track my progress through these next 4 weeks. It's incredibly frustrating that the NY unemployment system provides basically zero guidance on what to do during forfeit periods, but this community has given me all the real answers I needed. I'm definitely going to follow everyone's advice: keep certifying religiously, document everything with screenshots, maintain work search requirements, and most importantly remember that this is temporary punishment, not permanent loss of benefits. Thanks to everyone for sharing their stories - knowing we're all dealing with this bureaucratic nightmare together makes it feel so much less overwhelming!