NYS Department of Labor unemployment overpayment - will they take my tax refund if I owe money?
I just found out I owe the NYS Department of Labor around $2,800 from an overpayment they say happened last year. I'm supposed to start paying it back but honestly can't afford much right now. My question is - if I owe unemployment money, will they automatically take my state tax refund when I file? I'm expecting about $1,200 back this year and really need that money for bills. Has anyone dealt with this before? Do they intercept your refund or do I have time to work out a payment plan first?
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Alexander Evans
Yes, NYS Department of Labor can and will intercept your state tax refund for unemployment overpayments. This is called a tax offset. However, you have options - you can request a payment plan before they take your refund. Contact them immediately to set up an arrangement. You'll need to provide financial hardship documentation if you want to negotiate lower payments.
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Ruby Garcia
•Thanks for the info. Do you know how long I have before they start taking refunds? I haven't heard anything about setting up payments yet.
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Evelyn Martinez
They took my entire state refund last year for an overpayment, didn't even get a warning. Found out when I checked my refund status and it said 'offset applied.' Was super frustrating because I was counting on that money.
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Benjamin Carter
•You should have received multiple notices before any offset happened. Check if you moved recently or if your address wasn't updated with NYS Department of Labor. They're required to give you opportunity to appeal or arrange payment before taking refunds.
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Maya Lewis
ugh the same thing happened to my sister except it was like $4000 they said she owed... she tried calling for weeks to figure out what happened but could never get through to anyone at the unemployment office
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Alexander Evans
•If you're having trouble reaching NYS Department of Labor by phone, there's actually a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps people get through to unemployment agents. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Might be worth checking out if you need to discuss payment options before they take your refund.
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Ruby Garcia
•Interesting, never heard of that before. I'll definitely look into it because I really need to talk to someone about this overpayment.
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Isaac Wright
Wait, can they take federal refunds too or just state? I owe money but most of my refund comes from federal taxes.
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Benjamin Carter
•NYS Department of Labor can only intercept state tax refunds directly. For federal refunds, it would require a different process through the Treasury Offset Program, which is less common for state unemployment overpayments.
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Lucy Taylor
This whole overpayment thing is such BS. They approve your benefits then decide months later you didn't qualify? How are we supposed to know their rules better than they do? The system is completely backwards.
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Connor Murphy
•I totally agree it's frustrating, but usually overpayments happen when there's new information they didn't have initially - like unreported work or an employer contest. Still doesn't make it any easier to deal with financially.
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