I am posting this on behalf of someone else (they have trouble with English, pseudonym Sam).

Back in 2020, Sam applied for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program and was approved. Sam did not have a work history in 2019 but began working in 2020, albeit with heavily shortened hours compared to what the actual number of hours were.

Sam is self-employed as a babysitter and began babysitting a child in January 2020 (first week) and when the lock downs began, the hours dwindled to single digits at a lower pay. In the application, Sam put their current income in 2020 as the wages.

Sam was told (by their CPA) that even if they didn't work in 2019, they should still apply for it and when the phone interview happened, Sam did say that they began working in January and was still approved.

Today Sam received an email asking for the following

"According to federal law, you must now provide documentation to verify that:

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• You were eligible for PUA benefits when you filed your original PUA application, and
• You made your weekly certifications to claim benefits

You must prove that you were part of the workforce, by providing proof of:

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• Employment
• Self-employment, or
• That you were planning to begin employment or self-employment"

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Now, because Sam applied in 2020, they are asking for the 2019 Schedule C according to their FAQs.

https://dol.ny.gov/pua-documentation

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According to this, someone without a sufficient work history is still considered a covered individual. Sam was working at the start of January and didn't apply for PUA until mid March, early April I believe.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/9021#a_3

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However, even after stating they didn't work in 2019, they were approved. What should Sam submit or include in the submission of documents?