When will NY unemployment tourism worker funds hit virtual debit cards?
Has anyone received their virtual debit card for the NY tourism worker fund yet? Applied on March 15, 2025 and got approved last week, but still nothing in my email about the card. The approval letter said 7-10 business days for the virtual card to be issued. Getting nervous since rent is due soon and I was counting on this. Anyone know how long it actually takes?
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Olivia Harris
still waiting on mine too, applied march 10 got approved like 12 days ago... nothing in email yet
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James Martinez
•Ugh, so frustrating! Did you try calling them? I've been trying but can't get through to an actual person.
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Alexander Zeus
I received mine yesterday, exactly 9 business days after approval. Check your spam folder! My email got filtered there, and I almost missed it. The subject line was something like "Your NY Tourism Fund Card is Ready" from noreply@nytourismfund.ny.gov.
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James Martinez
•Thanks for the tip! Just checked spam and junk but nothing there. Maybe they're sending them out in batches. I'll give it a couple more days I guess.
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Alicia Stern
Does anyone know if we can transfer the money from the virtual card to our bank accounts? Or do we have to use the card for all purchases? The FAQs on the site aren't clear about this.
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Gabriel Graham
•You can transfer the funds to your bank account through the card portal. Once you get the virtual card email, it has instructions to create an account. From there, you'll see a "Transfer Funds" option. It takes 2-3 business days for the transfer to complete.
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Drake
mine took 15 business days not the 7-10 they claim... system is always slow lol
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James Martinez
•15 days?! Great, more waiting... 😩
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Sarah Jones
Has anyone noticed they DEDUCTED $50 from the approved amount?? I was approved for $2,450 but the card only had $2,400! What is that about??? Is this happening to anyone else or just me?
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Alexander Zeus
•That sounds concerning. I received the full amount I was approved for. You should definitely call and ask about that discrepancy. Keep documentation of your approval amount.
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Sebastian Scott
I've been trying to call the helpline for three days about my missing card and it's IMPOSSIBLE to get through. Just constant busy signals or disconnects after waiting 40+ minutes. Anyone found a way to actually talk to a human being there??
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Gabriel Graham
•I was having the same problem but found a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 10 minutes. They basically call for you and connect you when they reach a live person. Saved me hours of frustration. Their site is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE
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James Martinez
UPDATE: Finally got my virtual card today! Took exactly 12 business days after approval. For anyone still waiting, hang in there. The email came from a different address than I expected (nytourismrelief@ny.gov), so check your spam carefully. Now figuring out how to transfer to my bank account...
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Alexander Zeus
•Great news! For transferring to your bank, after you log in to the portal, click on "Account Management" then "Transfer Funds." You'll need your routing and account numbers. The first transfer requires verification, which takes an extra day.
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Drake
•congrats! still waiting on mine... day 13 now 🙄
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