Key points
- A complaint to the NYC Commission on Human Rights must be filed within one year after the discriminatory practice; a claim of gender-based harassment may be filed within three years.[1][2]
- Calling the Commission or sending its online report form is not a complaint. The Commission says the clock does not stop until a verified complaint is signed, notarized, and mailed or personally delivered to its Law Enforcement Bureau.[3]
- A person who files with the Commission generally cannot also sue in court on the same City-law claim, although certain dismissals restore the right to sue.[4][5]
- The Commission states that it no longer automatically cross-files employment claims with the EEOC; its notice is marked updated April 24, 2026.[6][7]
- After a hearing the Commission can order reinstatement, back pay and front pay, compensatory damages and attorney's fees, and can impose civil penalties of up to $125,000, or $250,000 for willful, wanton or malicious conduct, which are paid to the City.[8][9][10]
The NYC Commission on Human Rights is the City agency that takes complaints under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL), the anti-discrimination law in title 8 of the City's Administrative Code.[11] A complaint must generally be filed within one year, the Commission's own Law Enforcement Bureau investigates and prosecutes it, and the agency's services are free.[1][12][13]
This page covers the City agency only. The State agency, the Division of Human Rights, takes complaints under the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) and has a different deadline: three years, for acts on or after February 15, 2024.[14][15] The EEOC is now a separate filing, as explained below.[6]
Who can file with the Commission?
Under the NYCHRL, any person aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice, or that person's attorney, may sign and file a verified written complaint with the Commission.[16] Three threshold questions decide whether the Commission can take it.
- Is there a New York City connection? The New York Court of Appeals has held that a person who does not live in the city must plead and prove that the conduct had an impact within the city, and that the law protects non-residents who work in the city.[17][18] See whether New York law applies to remote workers.
- Is the employer covered? For most employment provisions the NYCHRL does not reach an employer that had fewer than four persons in its employ at all times in the period that starts twelve months before the practice began and runs through its end.[19] A claim of gender-based harassment can be brought against any employer, including one with fewer than four.[20] See which employers are covered.
- Has the same grievance already gone somewhere else? The Commission has no jurisdiction if the complainant has already started a court action on the same grievance, unless that action was dismissed or withdrawn without prejudice.[21] The Commission's public page puts it more broadly: a person cannot file there after filing a discrimination complaint on the same facts with any other court or agency, including the State Division of Human Rights and the EEOC, though unemployment insurance and workers' compensation claims do not count.[22]
How long do you have to file?
| City-law route | Time limit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Complaint to the Commission, most claims | One year after the alleged discriminatory practice[1] | Admin. Code § 8-109(e)[1] |
| Complaint to the Commission, gender-based harassment | Three years after the alleged harassing conduct[2] | Admin. Code § 8-109(e)[2] |
| Lawsuit in court under the NYCHRL instead of a Commission complaint | Three years after the alleged discriminatory practice[23] | Admin. Code § 8-502(d)[23] |
The three-year Commission period is written for "a claim of gender-based harassment"; other claims fall under the one-year sentence.[2][1]
Two further City rules matter here. Under Local Law 62 of 2024, which the Commission lists as effective May 11, 2024, a term in an employment agreement that purports to shorten the time to file with the Commission is unenforceable and void as against public policy.[24] And New York's Appellate Division, First Department, has held that under the City law a pre-period act counts only if it is joined to actionable conduct within the limitations period; the guide to the continuing violation doctrine explains that case.[25]
Reporting is not filing
Reporting and filing are different steps, and only one of them counts for the deadline. To report discrimination or schedule an intake appointment, a person calls 311 and says "human rights," calls the Commission at (212) 416-0197, or uses the Commission's online report form.[26][27] None of those steps is a complaint.
The Commission's form states that filling it out "is not an official complaint" and that the statute of limitations "does not stop until a verified complaint is signed, notarized, and mailed or personally delivered to the Law Enforcement Bureau."[3] A person close to the one-year mark should say so at the first contact and should not treat the report as protection.
Appointments are held by phone or video, and in person when necessary.[26] The Commission's office is at 22 Reade Street in lower Manhattan, open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday except holidays, and photo identification is needed to enter.[28] An attorney may file a verified complaint for a client by mail to 22 Reade Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10007, with the Commission's intake form.[13]
What happens after a complaint is filed?
- Verified complaint. The complaint is a signed, verified written statement that names the person or business alleged to have discriminated and sets out the particulars.[16]
- Answer. The respondent must file a written, verified answer within 30 days after the Commission serves the complaint, and any allegation not specifically denied or explained is deemed admitted unless good cause is shown.[29]
- Investigation. The Law Enforcement Bureau carries out the Commission's investigatory and prosecutorial functions.[12] The Commission may issue subpoenas for witnesses and documents and may demand that records be preserved.[30]
- Mediation or conciliation. At any time after filing, the Commission may try to resolve the complaint by mediation or conciliation. What happens in those efforts is not publicly disclosed, but a conciliation agreement becomes a Commission order and is made public unless both parties agree otherwise and the Commission finds disclosure unnecessary.[31]
- Determination. The Bureau finds probable cause where a reasonable person, looking at the evidence as a whole, could conclude that it is more likely than not that the unlawful practice was committed. A probable-cause finding is not a final order and cannot be appealed.[32]
- Dismissal, if no probable cause. The Commission dismisses the complaint and states its reasons, and the complainant may apply to the Chairperson for review within 30 days of service.[33]
- Hearing. After a probable-cause finding the case is referred to an administrative law judge at OATH, the City's Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. The Commission's prosecutorial bureau presents the case, the complainant may intervene and take part with a lawyer, strict rules of evidence do not apply, and testimony is under oath.[34]
- Decision. The judge issues a report and recommendation, the parties have 30 days to file written comments, and the Commission then issues the final decision and order.[35]
- Court review. A complainant or respondent aggrieved by a final order may seek review in New York State Supreme Court within 30 days after service of the order; the Commission's findings of fact are conclusive if supported by substantial evidence.[36]
The Commission's mediation office operates independently of its other offices, and mediation is offered at no cost.[12][37] The guide to mediation in employment cases covers mediation more generally.
How long does it take?
The Commission's annual report for fiscal year 2025 (July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025) says it fielded 15,507 inquiries and filed 396 complaints, about 58% of them in employment.[38] It resolved 374 filed cases that year and reported that the average time filed complaints were pending while moving to a final resolution was 1,029 days.[39]
Of those 374 resolutions, 136 were settlements, 168 were administrative closures, 68 were probable-cause determinations and 2 were no-probable-cause determinations.[39] These are agency-wide figures, not a forecast for any single complaint.
What can the Commission order?
| Outcome | What the City law provides |
|---|---|
| Relief for the complainant | An order to cease and desist; hiring, reinstatement or upgrading; back pay and front pay; compensatory damages; and the complainant's reasonable attorney's fees, expert fees and costs[8] |
| Civil penalty for the violation | Up to $125,000, or up to $250,000 where the practice resulted from a willful, wanton or malicious act[9] |
| Who receives civil penalties | The City's general fund, not the complainant[10] |
| Failure to comply with a Commission order | A civil penalty of up to $50,000, plus up to $100 for each day the violation continues[40] |
In fiscal year 2025 the Commission reported obtaining $17,459,622 through conciliations, mediated settlements and withdrawals with benefits: $15,689,122 in compensatory damages to complainants and $1,770,500 in civil penalties.[37] Those are agency-wide totals for the year, not typical amounts.
A court case under the NYCHRL has a different remedy list: the statute gives a cause of action for damages, "including punitive damages," plus injunctive relief.[4] The pages on damages in New York employment cases and punitive damages compare the forums.
What does filing with the Commission do to a lawsuit?
Under the NYCHRL a person may sue in court unless that person has filed a complaint with the Commission or the State Division of Human Rights about the same practice.[4] Choosing the agency is therefore usually choosing against a City-law lawsuit, which is known as an election of remedies. The State law has a matching rule: under the NYSHRL a person may sue in court unless that person has filed a complaint with the Division or with any local commission on human rights.[41]
The right to sue is preserved if the Commission dismisses the complaint for administrative convenience, on the complainant's early request, or for lack of jurisdiction.[5] The Commission must dismiss for administrative convenience when the complainant asks before the respondent has answered, unless it has already investigated or engaged the parties in conciliation; it may also do so when the complainant asks, 180 days have passed since filing, the complaint has not been actively investigated and the respondent will not be unduly prejudiced.[42]
While a complaint is pending at the Commission, the three-year period to sue under the NYCHRL is tolled, meaning paused.[23] It is not tolled where the complaint is dismissed for administrative convenience because of the complainant's own malfeasance, misfeasance or recalcitrance, though declining a reasonable conciliation offer does not count as such.[43] The guide to election of remedies covers these rules in full.
The EEOC is now a separate filing
Many older guides say a Commission complaint is automatically filed with the EEOC as well. The Commission now says otherwise. Its complaint-process page states that, as a result of changes made by the EEOC, it "no longer automatically cross-files claims of employment discrimination with the EEOC."[6] The notice is marked updated April 24, 2026, and adds that City law and protections under the NYCHRL have not changed.[7]
The Commission's advice for employment claims is that a person who files there and might also want to pursue the same claim in federal court should also file with the EEOC, because employment discrimination complaints can generally be brought in federal court only if first filed at the EEOC.[44][7] In New York a federal Title VII charge has a 300-day filing period, so the federal period is shorter than either Commission period.[45][46]
The same Commission page says both that a person should also file with the EEOC and that the Commission cannot take a complaint from someone who has already filed on the same facts with the EEOC.[22][7] The page does not say which filing should come first. Ask the Commission that question at intake, and get the answer before the earlier of the two deadlines.
See dual filing, filing an EEOC charge in New York and the forum comparison.
Common questions
Does it cost anything to file with the NYC Commission on Human Rights, and do I need a lawyer?
The Commission says its services are free of charge.[13] The New York City Human Rights Law lets a person aggrieved, or that person's attorney, sign and file a verified written complaint, so a lawyer is allowed but is not a condition of filing.[16] At a hearing the Commission's own prosecutorial bureau presents the case, and a complainant who has intervened may take part in person or through counsel.[34]
Does submitting the online report form stop the deadline?
No. The Commission's form says that filling it out is not an official complaint and that the person is responsible for monitoring the statute of limitations, which does not stop until a verified complaint is signed, notarized, and mailed or personally delivered to the Law Enforcement Bureau.[3] The Commission has no jurisdiction over a complaint filed more than one year after the practice, or three years for gender-based harassment.[47]
If I file with the Commission, can I still sue my employer later?
Generally not on the same City-law claim: the right to sue under the New York City Human Rights Law exists unless the person has filed a complaint with the Commission or the State Division of Human Rights.[4] The right comes back if the Commission dismisses the complaint for administrative convenience, on the complainant's early request, or for lack of jurisdiction.[5] After a no-probable-cause dismissal, the complainant may instead apply to the Chairperson for review within 30 days of service, and a Chairperson's order affirming the dismissal can be taken to State Supreme Court within 30 days after service of that order.[33][36]
Can the Commission award punitive damages?
The remedies the Commission can order after a hearing include hiring or reinstatement, back pay and front pay, compensatory damages, and the complainant's attorney's fees and costs.[8] Punitive damages are named in the City statute as a remedy in a court action.[4] What the Commission can add is a civil penalty of up to $125,000, or $250,000 for a willful, wanton or malicious act, and that money goes to the City's general fund.[9][10]
How long does a Commission case take?
The Commission reported that in fiscal year 2025 the average time filed complaints were pending while moving to a final resolution was 1,029 days, and that it resolved 374 filed cases that year.[39] Cases that went through its mediation office averaged 107 days from acceptance into mediation to closure.[37] These are agency-wide averages, not a forecast for any one complaint.
Does a Commission complaint also count as an EEOC charge?
Not automatically. The Commission's notice, updated April 24, 2026, says that because of changes made by the EEOC it no longer automatically cross-files employment discrimination claims with the EEOC, and that a person who may want to pursue the same claim in federal court should also file with the EEOC.[6][7] In New York a federal Title VII charge has a 300-day filing period.[45][46]
Sources
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(e). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(e); Local Law 100 of 2018. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Report Discrimination" form acknowledgment. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-502(a). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-502(b). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process — Note about CCHR & EEOC Dual Filing" (updated April 24, 2026). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process" — "Note about CCHR & EEOC Dual Filing" (updated April 24, 2026; page read Oct. 5, 2026) — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-120(a)(1), (2), (8)-(10). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-126(a). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-127(a). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(e)(1), (f)(1); N.Y. Exec. Law § 297(1), (9); N.Y.C. Admin. Code §§ 8-109(a), 8-502(a); 28 U.S.C. § 1367(a) — New York State Senate, Laws of New York
- 47 RCNY § 1-02. — City of New York
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process." — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y. Exec. Law § 297(5) — New York State Senate, Laws of New York
- N.Y.S. Division of Human Rights, "Report Discrimination" — "Deadline for Reporting Discrimination" — New York State Division of Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(a), (c). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- Hoffman v. Parade Publs., 15 N.Y.3d 285, 289-291 (2010). — static.case.law
- Hoffman, 15 N.Y.3d at 290-291. — static.case.law
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-102 ("Employer"). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-102 ("Employer"); Local Law 98 of 2018. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(f). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(f); NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process" (page read Oct. 5, 2026) — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-502(d). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(e-1); Local Law 62 of 2024, § 1. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- Williams, 61 A.D.3d at 72-73, 80-81. — static.case.law
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Contact Us"; "Report Discrimination" (pages read Oct. 5, 2026) — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Contact Us." — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process"; "Contact Us" — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-111(a), (c). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-114(a), (b). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-115(a), (c), (d). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- 47 RCNY § 1-41; N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-116(a). — City of New York
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-113(d), (f); 47 RCNY § 1-42. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code §§ 8-116(c), 8-119(a), (b), (g); 47 RCNY § 1-61. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- 47 RCNY §§ 1-66(b), 1-67; N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-120(a). — City of New York
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-123(a), (e), (h). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, Annual Report Fiscal Year 2025, "Damages, Awards, and Civil Penalties"; "Office of Mediation and Conflict Resolution" (PDF pp. 27-28) — City of New York
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, Annual Report Fiscal Year 2025, "Inquiries" and "Total Complaints Filed" (PDF pp. 18, 23) — City of New York
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, Annual Report Fiscal Year 2025, "Case Determinations and Resolutions" (PDF p. 24) — City of New York
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code §§ 8-124, 8-126(c), 8-129. — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y. Exec. Law § 297(9) — New York State Senate, Laws of New York
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-113(a)(6), (b). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-502(e). — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- NYC Commission on Human Rights, "Complaint Process" — "Note about CCHR & EEOC Dual Filing" (page read Oct. 5, 2026) — New York City Commission on Human Rights
- 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(e)(1) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- EEOC, New York District Office, "Timeliness" (read 5 Oct 2026) — U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-109(e) — New York City Commission on Human Rights