What are the requirements for filing for unemployment with NYS Department of Labor?

You'll need to meet several basic requirements for NYS Department of Labor unemployment benefits. First, you must have worked and earned wages in at least two calendar quarters during your base period (usually the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters). You also need to have earned at least $2,600 in one quarter and total base period wages of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter earnings. Most importantly, you must be unemployed through no fault of your own - layoffs qualify, but quitting without good cause doesn't.

For documents, have your Social Security card, driver's license, and employment history ready including dates of employment, employer names and addresses, and reason for separation. You'll also need your most recent pay stub and any separation paperwork your employer gave you. The NYS Department of Labor application asks for all employers from the last 18 months so gather that info beforehand to make the process smoother.

just be ready to look for work too, they make you do job searches every week and keep a log of where you applied. i think its like 3 job contacts per week now but check the nys department of labor website to be sure

The approval timeline varies but typically takes 2-3 weeks if there are no issues. However, if your claim goes into adjudication for any reason, it can take much longer. Make sure you file your weekly claims even while waiting for approval, and start your job search immediately since you need to be able and available for work.

I had trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor when I had questions about my application. If you run into issues reaching them by phone, I found this service called Claimyr at claimyr.com that helped me get connected to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Really saved me time instead of calling dozens of times myself.

One thing to watch out for - if you had any side gigs or part-time work while employed, make sure you report ALL of it accurately. The NYS Department of Labor cross-checks with other agencies and you don't want to deal with an overpayment issue later. Better to be completely honest upfront.