What does it mean when NY unemployment adds effective days to my new claim?
I recently filed a new claim after my previous benefits ran out in August. Got approved last week and I checked my account today and noticed they added 80 effective days to my claim. Does this actually mean I'm fully approved or could they still deny me? I'm confused because I've been checking the payment history page obsessively for 3 days and no payment is showing up yet. The status says 'pending' but I see the effective days listed. This whole system is so confusing! I tried calling but spent 2 hours on hold before getting disconnected. Has anyone else seen effective days added to their claim but then got denied later? Or does this pretty much mean I'm good to go and just need to wait for the payment to process? Really need this money for November rent...
44 comments


Fatima Al-Maktoum
The effective days are basically how many days of benefits you're eligible to receive. If you see 80 days, that means you've been approved for 20 weeks (4 days per week). Congrats! It's normal for the payment to show as pending for a few days. Mine usually takes 2-3 business days to process after certification. Hang in there!
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Giovanni Rossi
•Omg thank you! That makes me feel so much better. I was stressing out thinking it might still get denied. So you think I should see a payment by the end of this week?
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Fatima Al-Maktoum
•Yeah you should see it by Friday if you certified earlier this week. The first payment sometimes takes a bit longer than subsequent ones. Just make sure you keep certifying weekly.
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Dylan Mitchell
•Not to be a buzzkill but my friend had effective days assigned and still got denied later when they discovered an issue with her previous employer. Hope that's not ur case tho!
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Giovanni Rossi
•Oh no, that's scary. Did she have to pay money back or anything?
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Dylan Mitchell
•Nah she never got any $ in the first place. They just canceled the claim before any payments went out.
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Sofia Gutierrez
After struggling with the ny unemployment system for weeks (so many disconnected calls!), I finally tried a service called claimyr.com that got me connected to an actual agent. Was the best decision ever - talking to a real person got my payments unstuck within days. Check out this vid about how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE
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Dmitry Petrov
•does that actually work? sounds kinda sketchy tbh 🤔
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Sofia Gutierrez
•100% worked for me. I was desperate after like 30 failed call attempts. The service just calls for you and notifies you when theres a real person. Saved me hours of frustration.
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StarSurfer
•another ad for this service? these posts are starting to look suspicious af
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Sofia Gutierrez
•Not an ad lol. Just sharing what worked for me after weeks of frustration. I was literally about to give up on getting my benefits when I found this.
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Ava Martinez
•I tried it last month when I couldnt reach anyone for 3 weeks straight. Got a callback in like 40 mins. It was worth it cuz I got my backpay of $3800 the next day!
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Miguel Castro
Yeah effective days = approved. But you still need to do your weekly certifications to get paid. Make sure u answer all the questions correctly or it'll delay things more. The system is designed to be as confusing as posssible I swear 🤮
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Zainab Abdulrahman
my experience: having eff days means ur claim is valid BUT that doesn't mean payments start flowing automatically. I had effective days for 2 weeks before anyone told me I had an ID verification issue that was blocking payment. Had to upload more docs and wait another week. The pending status could mean there's still something they need from u.
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Giovanni Rossi
•That's what I'm worried about! How did you find out about the ID verification issue? Did they email you or did you have to call?
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Zainab Abdulrahman
•had to call like 50 times before getting through. They never emailed me about it. The website is useless for telling you whats actually wrong.
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Connor Byrne
•This is why I finally broke down and used claimyr.com - couldn't deal with the constant busy signals and disconnects. Got through to an agent who told me exactly what was holding up my claim.
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Yara Elias
ok so heres the deal with effective days: they're assigned when ur MONETARILY eligible but doesnt mean ur claim is fully approved. there could still be non-monetary issues. the "pending" status is the real indicator - if it stays pending for more than a week, theres probably an issue. you should call them - try early morning like 7:59am right when they open.
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Giovanni Rossi
•Ugggghh that's so frustrating! I've tried calling at opening time but the line is already jammed. I'll keep trying I guess. Do you know if there's an email address that actually works?
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Yara Elias
•No email that works in my experience. You just gotta keep hammering the phone. Or try what others suggested with that claimyr service. My cousin used it and got through.
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QuantumQuasar
The NY unemployment system is COMPLETELY BROKEN. I see people with 10+ weeks of pending payments with no explanation. Having effective days is usually a good sign, but I wouldn't count on anything until you see the money hit your account or debit card. Keep calling, use the contact form on the website, email your state rep, do everything you can.
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Keisha Jackson
•💯 this right here. I've been dealing with them for months. Got approved, had payments, then randomly stopped with no explanation. System is held together with duct tape.
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Paolo Moretti
•contacting your state rep is actually solid advice. My assemblywoman's office helped escalate my claim when I was stuck in limbo for 6 weeks.
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Amina Diop
LISTEN UP - I WORK IN HR AND DEAL WITH THIS STUFF ALL THE TIME Effective days = your claim has been monetarily approved and they've calculated how many days of benefits you can receive. This is a good sign! The pending status is normal for the first payment. It typically takes 2-3 business days after your first certification to process. HOWEVER - there could still be non-monetary issues that need to be resolved: - Employment separation reason verification - Identity verification - Work search requirements - Other eligibility issues If your payment stays pending for more than a week, something is likely holding it up. Unfortunately, the only reliable way to find out what's going on is to speak with an agent directly. The website rarely tells you the specific problem. Your best options are: 1. Keep calling the main number (best times are 7:58am exactly or 4:45pm) 2. Use a service like claimyr.com that will wait on hold for you 3. Contact your state representative's office for help 4. Submit the online form (though responses can take weeks) Don't give up! The system is frustrating but persistence pays off. Most issues can be resolved with the right information.
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Giovanni Rossi
•Thank you for this detailed info! Super helpful. I'll give it another couple days and then try calling again if nothing changes.
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Oliver Weber
•Appreciate this breakdown. I work for a different state UI system and this is pretty accurate across most states.
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Natasha Romanova
I was in the EXACT same situation last month! Had 80 effective days showing but payment stuck on pending. Turns out they needed additional info from my last employer. Had to call like 50 times but finally got through and fixed it. Don't assume its automatically working just cuz u see effective days!
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Giovanni Rossi
•Did they tell you what info they needed when you finally got through? Or was it a surprise when you called?
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Natasha Romanova
•Complete surprise! Nothing on the website indicated any problem. The agent was like "oh we sent your employer a form 3 weeks ago and they never responded" like i was supposed to know that 🙄
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NebulaNinja
•classic NYSDOL move... they expect us to be mind readers lol
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Javier Gomez
if u certified after sunday it can take a few days for payment to post. i usually certify sunday morning and see payment by tuesday. but first payment can take longer cuz they review everything.
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Emma Wilson
do u have direct deposit set up? if not they mail u a debit card which can take like 2 weeks to arrive. effective days is a good sign but check ur payment method.
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Giovanni Rossi
•Yeah I set up direct deposit right away when I applied. My banking info shows as verified in the system.
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Malik Thomas
Took me 6 WEEKS to get my first payment even tho I had effective days showing from the beginning. System is garbage. Once I finally got through to a human (used claimyr.com after trying for weeks on my own), they fixed it in 5 minutes. Turned out to be a simple identity verification flag that no one bothered to tell me about.
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Isabella Oliveira
•I had a similar experience! waited 8 weeks with no explanation. finally got through and they fixed it instantly. criminal how they make us suffer.
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Ravi Kapoor
effective days just means ur ELIGIBLE for that many days of benefits. dosent mean ur gonna get paid right away or at all if theres other issues.
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Freya Larsen
Check your message inbox on the unemployment website. Sometimes they send messages there about issues with your claim but DONT email you about them. Its stupid af.
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Giovanni Rossi
•Good idea - just checked and nothing there. So frustrating!
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GalacticGladiator
anyone else think its ridiculous that we pay taxes for decades and then when we need help they make it nearly impossible to actually get benefits? the whole system is designed to discourage people from collecting what they're owed. smh
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Omar Zaki
•Preach 🙌 They hope we'll give up out of frustration. I've paid into this system for 15 years and it's like pulling teeth to get MY money when I need it.
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Chloe Taylor
•It's by design. They make it hard so fewer people collect. Saves the state money.
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Diego Flores
•Unemployment insurance is actually paid by employers not by your taxes directly. But I agree the system is intentionally frustrating.
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Savannah Glover
Having effective days is definitely a positive sign - it means they've calculated your weekly benefit amount and determined you're monetarily eligible. The "pending" status is normal for first-time payments and usually clears within 3-5 business days after certification. However, there can still be non-monetary issues (like identity verification or employer response delays) that aren't always visible on the website. If it stays pending beyond a week, definitely try calling early morning around 8am or consider using one of those callback services people mentioned. The system is frustrating but hang in there - once the first payment goes through, subsequent ones are usually much smoother!
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Caesar Grant
•This is super helpful, thank you! I'm feeling a bit more optimistic now. I certified on Monday so I guess I'll wait until early next week before panicking. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences - makes me feel less alone in this nightmare system 😅
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