NYS Department of Labor what does issue closed level 3 mean for unemployment claim status?
I was checking my unemployment claim status today and noticed it now shows 'issue closed level 3' but I have no idea what this means. My weekly claims were processing fine for the past month, then last week I got held up in some kind of review. Now I see this level 3 thing and I'm completely lost. Has anyone seen this before? I tried looking it up on the NYS Department of Labor website but couldn't find any explanation of what the different levels mean. Should I be worried or is this a good sign?
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Aisha Rahman
Level 3 usually means your issue has been escalated to a higher tier adjudicator at NYS Department of Labor. It's not necessarily bad - it just means your case needed more specialized review than the initial levels could handle. Could be anything from employment verification to a separation issue that required additional documentation review.
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QuantumQueen
•That makes me feel a bit better. Do you know how long level 3 reviews typically take? I'm getting nervous about my next payment.
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Ethan Wilson
i had level 3 last year and it took like 3 weeks to resolve but once it did all my back pay came through at once. just hang tight
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Yuki Sato
The issue closure at level 3 actually indicates resolution, not just escalation. When NYS Department of Labor shows 'issue closed level 3' it means a senior adjudicator has made a final determination on whatever was holding up your claim. You should see your payments resume within 2-3 business days if the determination was in your favor.
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Carmen Flores
•Wait, so closed means resolved? I've been stressing about this for nothing? How do I know if the determination was favorable or not?
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Yuki Sato
•Check your correspondence section in your my.ny.gov account. There should be a determination letter explaining the decision. If no letter yet, it usually means favorable since denials get immediate notifications.
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Andre Dubois
UGH the NYS Department of Labor system is so confusing with these random codes and levels. Why can't they just say 'approved' or 'denied' like normal people?? I swear they make this stuff complicated on purpose to frustrate us into giving up.
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CyberSamurai
•I feel you on this one. Been dealing with unemployment issues for months and still don't understand half the status messages.
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Zoe Alexopoulos
If you're having trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to clarify what level 3 means for your specific case, I had good luck using a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me reach an actual agent. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Was way easier than trying to call the regular number and getting hung up on constantly.
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QuantumQueen
•How much does something like that cost? I'm already tight on money waiting for these payments.
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Zoe Alexopoulos
•It's worth checking out their site for details, but honestly getting through to clarify your claim status can save you weeks of uncertainty. I was stuck for almost a month before I tried it.
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Ethan Wilson
Just wanted to update - checked my account this morning and my payment went through! The level 3 thing was actually good news. Thanks everyone for the explanations, really helped calm my nerves.
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CyberSamurai
•That's awesome! Always nice to hear when things work out with unemployment claims.
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LongPeri
I'm new here but wanted to share my recent experience with level 3. I had the same status show up last month and panicked because I couldn't find clear info anywhere online. Turns out @Yuki Sato is right - it means a senior adjudicator reviewed and closed your issue. Mine took about 5 business days after showing "issue closed level 3" before payments resumed, and I got all my back pay in one lump sum. The waiting is nerve-wracking but it's actually progress! Definitely check your correspondence inbox on my.ny.gov for any determination letters.
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