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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Elliott luviBorBatman
•Thanks for sharing your experience @LongPeri! It's really helpful to hear from someone who went through the same thing recently. The 5 business day timeline is good to know - I'm on day 3 since my status changed to "issue closed level 3" so hopefully I'll see movement soon. Did you get any kind of notification when the payments actually processed, or did you just have to keep checking your account?
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