I had something similar happen once but it wasn't unemployment it was when my ex finally started paying child support after like 2 years of nothing lol. I didn't know I had to report that either! Ended up with a $340 overpayment that they took out of my benefits over 3 months. The whole reporting thing is super confusing. Good luck!

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago! Got unemployment after my retail job ended and had no clue it counted as income for CalWORKs. Ended up with a $187 overpayment notice that totally freaked me out. Here's what I learned: unemployment is considered "unearned income" and counts dollar-for-dollar against your CalWORKs grant. The good news is you have options! I called and set up a payment plan for $25/month instead of paying it all at once. They were actually pretty understanding once I explained I genuinely didn't know the rules. Also, make sure you report your unemployment going forward on your SAR7 forms. I upload my EDD benefit statements as verification. The key is staying on top of reporting ANY income changes over your IRT within 10 days - learned that lesson the hard way! Don't stress too much about it - overpayments happen to tons of people because the rules really aren't explained clearly. Just be proactive about setting up that payment plan and you'll be fine.

So glad you're making progress! Just wanted to add one more thing that might help - when you go in person tomorrow, bring copies of EVERYTHING in addition to the originals. Sometimes they need to keep copies and other times they just want to verify the originals. Having both saves you from having to make another trip. Also, if you haven't already, make sure you have your kids' Social Security cards. That's another document that trips people up that wasn't mentioned in your original list. The worker should be able to tell you right then and there if you're missing anything else, which is so much better than waiting weeks for a notice in the mail. Good luck tomorrow - sounds like you're finally getting the help you need!

I'm so sorry you're going through this stress, especially with rent due next week! The CalWORKs system can be incredibly confusing and they really don't make it clear what documents are needed upfront. Based on what everyone else has shared (and they're all spot on!), it sounds like the main culprits are the child support cooperation forms and school verification. I went through something similar last year and here's what I wish I had known: 1. Even if the father isn't involved AT ALL, you still have to fill out the child support paperwork - it's mandatory 2. For school verification, they need it directly from the school on their official letterhead, not just a report card 3. Bank statements need to be complete (all pages) for the past 3 months One thing that really helped me was calling first thing in the morning (like 8:05am sharp) - I had much better luck getting through then versus later in the day. Since you're in such a time crunch with rent, when you go in person tomorrow definitely ask about emergency aid! They can sometimes issue a one-time payment while your regular application is being processed. Also ask about utility assistance through LIHEAP if you haven't already - it can help with past due bills. You've got this! The fact that the worker said you should qualify means you're on the right track, just need to get over this paperwork hurdle.

Just wanted to add my experience - I've been uploading my SAR 7 through BenefitsCal for about 6 months now and it's been mostly smooth. One thing I learned is to make sure your phone camera is set to the highest quality before taking the pictures. Also, if any pages have signatures or handwritten parts, take an extra close-up shot of those sections to make sure they're super clear. I usually upload around the 25th of the month (well before the deadline) and then call 2-3 days later to confirm. The peace of mind is worth the extra phone call! Good luck Emily, you've got this!

I'm new to CalWORKs and this whole SAR 7 process is kind of intimidating, but reading everyone's advice here has been incredibly helpful! I'm definitely going to try the BenefitsCal upload method since it sounds like most people have had success with it. My plan based on everyone's tips: upload each page separately with good lighting, make sure to select "SAR 7" from the dropdown menu, include my paystubs, take screenshots of the confirmation, and then call a few days later to verify they received everything. It's reassuring to know there are so many experienced people here willing to share what works. Thanks for creating such a supportive community!

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I'm new to CalWORKs and just got one of these Golden State Stimulus cards too! I was so confused because I expected everything to come through my regular EBT card. Thank you everyone for explaining the difference - I had no idea these were two completely separate systems. The activation info about using the number from the letter (not the card) is super helpful. One question though - if we don't have to report this as income, do we still need to keep any paperwork about it for our records? I want to make sure I'm doing everything right with my case worker.

So glad you got it resolved! This is super helpful info for anyone else who might run into the same issue. The automatic fraud protection makes sense but it's frustrating when you're trying to pay rent and don't know why your card suddenly won't work at ATMs. Good to know that calling EBT customer service directly (not the county office) can fix these blocks immediately. Definitely saving this thread for future reference!

This is such valuable information! I've been on CalWORKs for about 8 months and had no idea that using your EBT card in a different county could trigger an automatic fraud protection block. That's really good to know for future reference. I travel to see family in other counties pretty regularly and would have been completely confused if this happened to me. Thanks for sharing the resolution - it's so helpful to know that EBT customer service can remove these blocks immediately over the phone. The distinction between calling EBT customer service versus the county office is really important too. Glad you got your rent situation sorted out!