NY unemployment review period stuck at 4 weeks - is this normal wait time?

5 WEEKS????!! I'm only at 2 weeks and already panicking. Why even bother telling people 2-3 weeks on the website if it takes twice as long?? I hate this system so much.

Thanks for sharing this! Did they tell you what the verification step was that was holding things up? I'm wondering if my claim might be stuck for a similar reason.

Thanks for the detailed response! I've been certifying every week like clockwork. I've tried calling that number maybe 15 times over the past week but either get a busy signal or the automated system tells me they're experiencing high call volume and disconnects. Any other way to get in touch with them that actually works?

There's actually a method to the madness. Claims that require additional verification (like if you worked for multiple employers, or if there's any discrepancy in your reported wages) automatically get flagged for manual review, which adds 2-3 weeks. Same if your employer contests the claim or doesn't respond promptly. But yeah, from the outside it does seem completely random which is super frustrating when you're waiting for money you need for basic expenses.

I did get the monetary determination letter about a week after filing, showing what my weekly benefit would be. There aren't any messages or alerts showing in my account though - just the status saying "review in progress" with no other details. That's what's making this so frustrating!

That's definitely frustrating. If there are no messages requesting additional information, it likely means your claim is just in the backlog. One thing you might try is sending a secure message through your NY.gov account specifically asking if there's anything else needed for your claim. Sometimes this can flag your account for review sooner than just waiting in the queue.

I've tried calling at 8am sharp three times this week! Once I actually got through to the menu system but then after transferring me it just disconnected. I might have to try that Claimyr thing if nothing changes by the end of this week. This is getting ridiculous.

Great news! This is quite common - their automated identity verification system flags many legitimate claims for manual review. Glad you were able to get it resolved. Make sure to keep certifying weekly while you wait for the final processing.

awesome! let us know when u get paid. curious how long it takes now

congrats! bet that back pay felt good lol

This is such a helpful thread for anyone dealing with NY unemployment delays! Thanks for sharing the whole journey from problem to solution. The Claimyr service seems to be a real game-changer for getting through to actual agents when the regular phone lines are impossible.

I'm in the same boat as you @Freya Christensen - just hit the 3 week mark myself and getting really anxious about it. This whole thread has been super reassuring though! It s'crazy how the system seems so inconsistent - some people get approved in days while others wait over a month. I m'definitely going to bookmark that Claimyr service as a backup plan if I can t'get through on my own. The fact that @Jibriel Kohn got their full back pay so quickly once the actual issue was identified gives me hope that most of these delays are just bureaucratic logjams rather than actual problems with our claims. Thanks for sharing your timeline too - it helps to know others are going through the exact same thing right now!

Thanks for sharing your experience @Connor O'Brien! It's really helpful to hear another success story with the Claimyr service. I'm curious - did they charge you upfront or only after they successfully got you through to an agent? I'm at week 3 of waiting and starting to seriously consider it, but want to understand the cost structure first. Also, it's interesting that your delay was just because your employer took the full 10 days to respond - makes me wonder how many of these "review periods" are really just waiting for slow employer responses rather than any actual investigation of the claim itself.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges $20 upfront when you request the callback service, but they have a money-back guarantee if they can t'get you through to an agent within a reasonable time I (think it s'2 hours .)In my case, they got me connected in about 15 minutes so it was definitely worth it. You re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that a huge chunk of the pending "review cases" are just sitting there waiting for employer responses or for someone to manually verify that the employer didn t'contest the claim. It s'frustrating that the system doesn t'give you any visibility into WHY you re'waiting, but at least knowing that most delays aren t'due to problems with your actual claim makes the wait a bit more bearable. Good luck with your claim!

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - it s'like $20 or something. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay. I was skeptical at first too but honestly after wasting so many hours trying to call myself, it was totally worth it. And yeah, you re'right about the employer response thing - seems like a huge portion of these delays are just bureaucratic waiting periods rather than actual problems with our claims. The agent told me that employers often wait until the last possible day to respond, even when they re'not planning to contest anything. It s'so frustrating that they don t'communicate this to claimants - would save so much stress if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the vague review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used it a few weeks ago. They guarantee that if they can t'get you through to an agent within a reasonable time I (think it s'like 30-45 minutes ,)they ll'refund your money. In my case, I got through in about 15 minutes so it was totally worth it. And yes, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays! The agent told me that a huge percentage of the reviews "are" literally just the system waiting for employer responses, even when the employer isn t'planning to contest anything. It s'such a frustrating design flaw in their system - they could at least tell claimants that s'what they re'waiting for instead of the vague review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20 when I used it a few months ago. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. And you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - I think a huge portion of these reviews "are" literally just the system waiting for paperwork to shuffle around rather than anyone actually investigating whether you deserve benefits. It s'so frustrating that they don t'communicate this better to claimants. We re'all sitting here thinking there s'some problem with our claims when really it s'just bureaucratic timing!

@Chloe Taylor From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20-25 when I used them a few months back. They don t'charge if they can t'get you through. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response thing! The agent I spoke with mentioned that a huge percentage of delays are literally just waiting for employers to submit their response, even when they have no intention of contesting the claim. It s'frustrating that the system shows review "in progress when" it s'really just waiting "for your old boss to fill out paperwork. Makes" the whole process feel way more mysterious and stressful than it needs to be.

Hey @Chloe Taylor! I used Claimyr about 2 months ago and they charge you upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used them. They guarantee they'll get you through to an agent or you get your money back, so the risk is pretty minimal. What really surprised me was learning how much of these delays are just administrative bottlenecks rather than actual problems with our applications. My employer didn't contest anything either, but apparently even their neutral response took time to process through the system. It's frustrating that NY doesn't give us any visibility into these behind-the-scenes steps - would save everyone so much stress if we just knew what stage our claim was actually at!

@Chloe Taylor I used Claimyr about 2 months ago and they charge you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - no upfront cost. I think it was around $20-25 when I used it, which honestly felt like a bargain after trying to get through on my own for weeks. They give you a pretty clear breakdown of their pricing on their site before you start. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response times being a huge factor! The agent told me that a lot of the review "periods people" experience are literally just waiting for employers to submit their response, even when they have no intention of contesting the claim. It s'frustrating that they don t'communicate this better to claimants - would save people so much anxiety if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the vague review "in progress.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! They charge you upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used them back in January. They guarantee they ll'get you through to an agent within a certain timeframe I (think it was 30 minutes for me or) they refund your money. Honestly, after spending hours trying to get through on my own and the stress of waiting weeks with no updates, it was totally worth it. You re'probably right about the employer response delays being a huge factor - it makes sense that a lot of these reviews "are" really just waiting for paperwork to shuffle through the system rather than any actual human reviewing your case. The agent I spoke with was super helpful and could see exactly what was holding things up, which you d'never know from the generic review "in progress status" online.

@Chloe Taylor From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20 or $25, which honestly felt like nothing compared to the stress I was saving. They have you pay through their system once you re'actually talking to the NYSDOL representative. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays! The agent told me that s'one of the most common reasons for extended review periods. Apparently many employers just sit on the notification until the very last day, even when they re'not planning to contest anything. It s'frustrating that claimants have no visibility into that part of the process - would save so much anxiety if they just told us waiting "for employer response instead" of the generic review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor - From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent. I think it was around $20-25, which honestly felt like a bargain after weeks of failed attempts on my own. They have different pricing tiers depending on how quickly you want to get through, but even their basic service worked fine for me. You re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that a huge percentage of the current backlog is just waiting for employers who take the full 10 business days even when they re'not contesting anything. It s'frustrating that something so simple can add weeks to the process, but at least it means there s'usually nothing actually wrong with your claim. Definitely worth trying if you hit the 4+ week mark like I did!

@Chloe Taylor From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20-25 but honestly felt like a bargain after weeks of failed attempts on my own. They have different pricing tiers depending on how quickly you want to get connected. And you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays! The agent told me that a huge percentage of the review "in progress cases" are literally just sitting there waiting for employers to submit their response. It s'frustrating that the system doesn t'give you any visibility into what s'actually causing the delay - would save everyone so much stress if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the vague review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20 when I used them last month. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays being a huge factor. The agent told me that a lot of these under "review cases" are literally just sitting in a queue waiting for employer responses or for someone to manually verify that the response was received. It s'frustrating that they don t'communicate this better on their website - would save people a lot of anxiety if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the vague review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor - Great question! From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent. I think it was around $20-25, which honestly felt like a bargain after weeks of trying to get through on my own. They have different pricing tiers depending on how quickly you want to get connected, but even the basic option worked fine for me. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that s'actually one of the most common reasons for extended review periods. Apparently the system just sits there waiting for the employer response even if it s'going to be a simple no "contest reply." Really wish they were more transparent about these bottlenecks on their website instead of just saying 2-3 "weeks when" it s'clearly taking much longer for most people!

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges a flat fee upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used it in February. They guarantee they ll'get you through to an agent or you get your money back, so there s'really no risk. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays being a huge factor. The agent told me that a lot of the review "periods are" literally just the system waiting for employer responses, wage verifications, or other administrative stuff that has nothing to do with whether you actually qualify. It s'frustrating that they don t'communicate this better on their website - would save people a lot of stress if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the vague review "in progress status."

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20-25 when I used them a few months ago. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. They basically keep calling the NYSDOL line using some kind of automated system until they get through, then they conference you in with the agent. Honestly seemed sketchy at first but it really worked and saved me weeks of frustration. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - I bet a huge chunk of these pending "review cases" are just sitting there waiting for employers who take their sweet time responding to the unemployment office.

@Chloe Taylor - Claimyr charges you upfront when you book the call, but they have a success guarantee. I think I paid around $20-30 can (t'remember exactly and) they promise to keep trying until they get you through or they refund you. In my case, it worked on the first attempt so it was totally worth it considering I d'been trying on my own for weeks with no success. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response thing - the agent told me that a huge percentage of these delays are literally just waiting for employers to submit their paperwork, even when they re'not planning to contest the claim. It s'such a frustrating system flaw that claimants have to wait in limbo for something completely out of their control!

@Chloe Taylor Great question! With Claimyr, you pay upfront but they guarantee to get you through to an agent or they refund your money. I think it was around $20-25 when I used it. They have you schedule a time slot and then they call you when they ve'got an agent on the line - pretty seamless process. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays! The agent told me that s'actually one of the most common reasons for extended review periods, especially since many HR departments are understaffed right now. It s'frustrating because there s'literally nothing you can do to speed that part up - you just have to wait for your former employer to get their act together.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20 when I used them last month. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. They have different pricing tiers depending on how quickly you want to get connected, but the basic service worked fine for me. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that s'actually one of the most common reasons for extended review periods. Apparently many employers just sit on these requests until the last possible day, even when they have no intention of contesting the claim. It s'frustrating that we as claimants have no visibility into that part of the process!

@Chloe Taylor They only charge after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20 which honestly felt like nothing compared to the stress I was going through trying to get through on my own. You re'absolutely right about the employer response times being a huge factor. The agent I spoke with mentioned that a lot of the January/February claims were delayed specifically because of employer response backlogs after the holidays. Apparently employers can request extensions too if they need more time to gather employment records, which can push things out even further. It s'frustrating that none of this is communicated to us claimants - we just see review "in progress while" all this back-and-forth is happening behind the scenes.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - it s'around $20-25 if I remember correctly. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. What really surprised me was learning that so many delays are just administrative timing issues like slow employer responses. Makes you realize the review "period" often isn t'them actually reviewing your case at all - just waiting for paperwork to trickle in. Definitely worth trying the service if you re'getting desperate, especially since you re'already at 3 weeks and heading into that 4-5 week danger zone where anxiety really kicks in!

@Chloe Taylor Great question! From what I remember, Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - I think it was around $20-25 when I used them a few weeks ago. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything, which made it feel less risky to try. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that a huge percentage of these pending "review cases" are literally just waiting for employers to submit their paperwork. It s'so frustrating that the system doesn t'tell you that s'what s'happening! Makes the whole process feel way more mysterious and stressful than it needs to be.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used it a few months ago. They guarantee they ll'get you through to an agent or you get your money back, so there s'really no risk. Honestly after spending weeks trying to get through on my own, it felt like a bargain. And you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - I bet a huge chunk of these pending "review claims" are just sitting there waiting for employers who take their sweet time responding. The whole system seems designed to frustrate people into giving up, but posts like this one really help show that persistence and (sometimes a little help from services like Claimyr pays) off in the end!

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that about Claimyr! They charge you upfront but it s'a reasonable fee I (think it was around $20-30 and) they guarantee they ll'get you through to an agent or you get your money back. In my case, they delivered exactly as promised. You re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - I think a huge chunk of these mysterious "review" periods are just the system waiting for employers to submit their paperwork. The 10-day window they give employers seems way too generous when people are waiting for their lifeline payments. It s'frustrating that this isn t'communicated clearly to claimants - we re'left thinking there s'some complex investigation happening when really it might just be waiting for HR departments to get around to filing their response.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! With Claimyr, you only pay if they successfully connect you to an agent - it s'$20 if they get you through. If they can t'get you connected after trying, you don t'pay anything. I was skeptical at first too but honestly after wasting so many hours trying to call myself, the $20 was totally worth it for my sanity. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays being a huge factor. The agent told me that a lot of these multi-week waits are literally just the system waiting for employers to submit their response, even when the employer has no intention of contesting the claim. It s'such a poorly designed process - they should at least show you what stage your claim is in rather than just saying review "in progress for" everything!

@Chloe Taylor I can answer about the Claimyr pricing! They charge $20 upfront when you book the call, but they only charge your card if they successfully connect you to an agent. If they can t'get you through after trying, you don t'get charged. I thought that was pretty fair since there s'no risk on your end. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that s'actually one of the most common reasons claims get held up, especially with larger companies that have automated HR systems that just sit on these requests until the last possible day. It s'frustrating because from our end it looks like the state is being slow, but really it s'often just waiting on paperwork from employers who aren t'prioritizing it.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - it s'like $20 or something around that range. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. Honestly, after wasting so many hours trying to call myself and getting nowhere, it was totally worth it. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays! The agent told me that s'one of the most common reasons claims get stuck in review "-" the system just sits there waiting for the employer to respond even if it s'just a formality. Really wish NYSDOL was more transparent about what s'actually causing the delays instead of just showing review "in progress with" zero details.

@Chloe Taylor I can answer about the Claimyr pricing! They charge $20 upfront when you request the callback service, but if they can t'get you through to an agent within their promised timeframe usually (30-60 minutes ,)they refund the fee. So there s'really no risk - you only pay if it actually works. In my case, it was definitely worth it considering I d'been trying to call on my own for over two weeks with zero success. And you re'absolutely right about the employer response delays - the agent told me that s'one of the most common reasons claims get stuck in review "status" even when there s'nothing actually wrong with them. The whole system would probably run so much smoother if employers had to respond within 5 business days instead of 10!

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you only after they successfully connect you to an agent - it s'like $20 or $25 I think. If they can t'get you through, you don t'pay anything. For me it was totally worth it since I had been trying to call for over a week with zero success. And yeah, you re'absolutely right about the employer response times being a huge factor. The agent told me that a lot of the delays people are seeing right now are actually just employers taking their sweet time to respond, not any real issues with the claims themselves. It s'frustrating that they don t'communicate this better to claimants - would save so much anxiety if they just said waiting "for employer response instead" of the generic review "in progress message!"

@Chloe Taylor I can answer that! Claimyr charges you upfront - I think it was around $20 when I used it a few weeks ago. They guarantee they ll'get you through to an agent within a certain timeframe or they refund you, so there s'not much risk. And yes, you re'absolutely right about the employer response thing! The agent told me that a huge percentage of the delays are literally just waiting for employers to submit their response within that 10-day window. Even if they don t'contest the claim, the system won t'move forward until they officially respond or the 10 days expire. It s'such a frustrating bottleneck that could easily be automated better. Hope you get through soon - week 3 is definitely when the anxiety really starts ramping up!