Why does my NYS Department of Labor unemployment claim say active issues - what does this mean?
I've been checking my claim status on the ny.gov website and it keeps showing 'active issues' but doesn't tell me what the issues actually are. I filed my initial claim about 10 days ago and haven't heard anything back yet. My weekly certification went through fine but no payments have been released. Does anyone know what 'active issues' means and how long this usually takes to resolve? I'm starting to get worried because I have bills coming up.
14 comments


Everett Tutum
Active issues typically means your claim is in adjudication - the NYS Department of Labor is reviewing something about your eligibility. Common reasons include separation from your last job, earnings verification, or identity confirmation. It can take 2-6 weeks depending on the complexity. Keep filing your weekly claims even during adjudication.
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Aria Khan
•Thanks for explaining! I was laid off so I'm not sure why there would be an issue with my separation. Should I be doing anything while I wait?
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Sunny Wang
same thing happened to me last month! mine said active issues for almost 3 weeks before they finally approved everything. turned out they just needed to verify my wages with my previous employer. super frustrating because they don't tell you what the actual issue is
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Aria Khan
•Did you ever find out what was taking so long? I'm worried it's something I did wrong on my application.
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Sunny Wang
•nah you probably didn't do anything wrong. the system is just slow. i tried calling like 50 times but could never get through to ask what was going on
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Hugh Intensity
If you need to reach someone at NYS Department of Labor about your active issues, I had luck using claimyr.com. It's a service that helps you get through to an actual agent instead of waiting on hold forever. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. I was able to find out my adjudication was just a routine wage verification that way.
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Effie Alexander
•How much does something like that cost? I'm already tight on money waiting for my benefits.
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Hugh Intensity
•It's worth checking out their site for the details. For me it was better than calling hundreds of times and never getting through. At least I got answers about what was holding up my claim.
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Melissa Lin
THE ACTIVE ISSUES THING IS SO ANNOYING!! They make it sound like you did something wrong when really they're just being slow about processing claims. I had active issues for a month and it turned out to be nothing - they just needed to confirm my last day of work. Meanwhile I'm stressing about paying rent!
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Lydia Santiago
•I feel you on the stress part. The uncertainty is the worst when you're already dealing with job loss.
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Romeo Quest
Keep filing weekly claims no matter what! Even if it says active issues you still need to keep certifying or you'll lose those weeks when they finally resolve everything. Learned that the hard way when my cousin skipped filing thinking it didn't matter.
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Aria Khan
•Good to know! I've been filing every week but wasn't sure if I should continue. Thanks for the heads up.
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Zadie Patel
I'm going through the exact same thing right now! Filed 2 weeks ago and still showing active issues with no explanation. It's so frustrating not knowing what's wrong or how long to expect this to take. Reading everyone's experiences here makes me feel a bit better that it's probably just routine processing delays. Going to keep filing weekly like everyone suggested and try to be patient, but man this waiting game is stressful when you need the money.
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Ravi Sharma
•Hang in there! I'm in the same boat - filed about the same time as you and seeing the same "active issues" message. It's really reassuring to see so many people saying this is normal processing stuff. The waiting is brutal when you're counting on that money, but sounds like we just have to ride it out. At least we know to keep filing weekly even while waiting!
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