What happens with ny unemployment forfeit days and do I still need to claim weekly?

Yes, you absolutely need to keep certifying every single week, even during the forfeit days period! If you stop, they'll close your claim completely and you'll have to reapply all over again when your forfeit period ends. I had this happen with 24 forfeit days back in September and almost made this exact mistake.

After dealing with this nightmare myself, I finally found a way to actually talk to someone at ny unemployment. Used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) and it got me a callback with an actual human at the unemployment office who explained everything about forfeit days. Best money I've spent to finally get answers about my benefits! They have this video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE

Forfeit days are basically unpaid penalty days. They're saying you committed fraud (whether you did or not) and now you have to serve these days without pay. And YES 100% keep certifying weekly or you'll lose everything! The system is designed to trip you up.

I had 45 forfiet days last year for 'unreported income' that I actually DID report (just like you). Such BS. But yeah you gotta keep certifying EVERY week or you'll just create more problems for yourself. The DOL is hoping people will give up and stop claiming so they don't have to pay.

The whole forfeit day system is such garbage. They're basically saying "we're still acknowledging you're unemployed but we're not gonna pay you" 🤡 But yeah keep certifying! Count exactly how many weeks of forfeit days you have (30 days = basically 4 weeks of certifying with no pay) and mark it on your calendar.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now. I have a quick question - are you able to see your remaining forfeit days somewhere in your account? I can't figure out how to track mine.

OK hear me out cuz I went through this exact thing. Here's what you need to know about forfeit days: - KEEP CERTIFYING WEEKLY no matter what. This is critical or you lose your claim. - Each time you certify for a week, 7 forfeit days get deducted from your total. - After all forfeit days are served, payments resume automatically. - Keep track yourself - the system won't tell you clearly where you stand. - If you need to speak to an actual human (which I highly recommend), use claimyr.com - it's the only way I actually got someone on the phone after weeks of trying. - You can appeal the decision if you have evidence you reported correctly, but honestly it can take longer than just serving the forfeit days. - Document EVERYTHING going forward - screenshots, confirmation numbers, etc. The system is designed to be confusing and push people to give up. Don't let them win! 💪

lol welcome to the forfeit day club! NYS unemployment loves handing these out. Definitely keep certifying and just ride it out. Think of it as unemployment jail 😂

Don't they usually send you a letter explaining why you got forfeit days? My freind got one that laid out exactly what income they said wasn't reported and which weeks were affected.

I had 2 different experiences with forfeit days. First time I kept certifying and got paid after they were done. Second time my claim got messed up and I had to call. Took FOREVER to get through until I used claimyr.com - finally got someone who fixed everything in one call.

the whole ny unemployment system is designed to make u give up. keep certifying, document everything, and know ur rights. they count on people not fighting back!

Another option: if u have a case worker or state rep, reach out to them! Sometimes they can help push things along with NY unemployment. My assembly member's office helped me with a similar issue.

Question - did you report cash income or was it on the books? Because that makes a difference in how they handle forfeit days and penalties.

i just went through this. ended up with 60 forfeit days for a similar reason 😡 the ONLY thing that helped was getting an actual person on the phone to explain exactly what happened. i used claimyr.com and it was so worth it after weeks of failing to get through. turns out they applied income from the wrong quarter to my claim. still had to serve the days but at least i understand what happened now.

I went through something similar last year with 21 forfeit days. Here's what I learned the hard way: YES absolutely keep certifying every single week no matter what! I almost stopped during week 2 thinking "what's the point" but thankfully found this community and everyone told me to keep going. The forfeit days count down with each weekly certification - so your 30 days will be spread across about 4-5 weeks of certifying. Once you're done serving them, payments resume automatically with your next certification. It's frustrating as hell but just think of it as serving your time. Keep a calendar and mark off each week so you know you're making progress. The system definitely doesn't make it clear but stopping certification would be way worse than just riding it out!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now - 30 forfeit days for "unreported income" that I absolutely DID report properly! It's so frustrating when you know you followed all the rules but the system still penalizes you. Reading everyone's responses here has been super helpful though. I was definitely worried about whether to keep certifying or not, but sounds like that's absolutely essential. Going to start marking my calendar too so I can count down the weeks. Has anyone had luck getting the forfeit days reduced or overturned on appeal, or is it usually not worth the time and effort?

I'm dealing with forfeit days too - got hit with 45 days for supposedly not reporting gig work that I definitely did report. The whole thing is infuriating! But everyone here is right about keeping up with your weekly certifications. I made the mistake of missing one week early on thinking "what's the point if I'm not getting paid anyway" and it created a whole additional mess that took weeks to straighten out. Now I just treat it like I'm serving time - mark each week off on my calendar and remind myself that every certification gets me one week closer to the end. The system is definitely designed to wear you down and make you give up, but don't let them win! Stay strong and keep certifying no matter how pointless it feels. Your future self will thank you when those payments start flowing again.

I'm so sorry you're going through this - the forfeit day penalty is one of the most frustrating aspects of NY unemployment! I went through something very similar last year with 25 forfeit days for income they claimed I didn't report (even though I had screenshots proving I did). Here's what I learned: DEFINITELY keep certifying every single week during your forfeit period! This is absolutely critical - if you stop, they'll close your claim entirely and you'll have to start over from scratch. The forfeit days get deducted from your total with each weekly certification (7 days per week), so your 30 days will take about 4-5 weeks to complete. I know it feels pointless certifying when you're not getting paid, but think of it as staying in the system while serving your "penalty time." Mark each week on your calendar so you can see your progress - it really helped me mentally to count down. The good news is that once you've served all 30 days, your payments will automatically resume with your next certification. No additional steps needed on your part. Just keep documenting everything going forward and maybe consider keeping screenshots of all your certifications from now on. The system is definitely stacked against us, but don't let them wear you down! You've got this! 💪

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this! I just went through the exact same situation - 28 forfeit days for "unreported income" that I absolutely DID report correctly. The frustration is real! But please listen to everyone here - you MUST keep certifying every single week during your forfeit period. I cannot stress this enough! Here's what helped me get through it: I created a simple countdown chart and crossed off each week as I completed my certification. Your 30 forfeit days will take about 4-5 weeks of certifying to complete (since each weekly cert covers 7 days). It feels awful certifying for $0, but think of it as keeping your place in line while serving your "sentence." The silver lining is that once you've served all 30 days, your payments automatically restart - no additional paperwork or calls needed. I just got my first payment back last week and it felt amazing! Stay strong and don't let the system break you down. Document everything going forward and consider this a hard lesson learned about keeping receipts for EVERYTHING with NY unemployment. You've got this! 💪