EDD SDI payment delay after certifying - normal timeframe or payment issue?
Hey everyone! I'm so stressed right now about my husband's SDI payments. He's been on temporary disability since mid-February (chronic back issues flared up badly after a work incident). We did our certification through the EDD portal exactly two weeks ago on March 15th, 2025, confirming he's still disabled and hasn't returned to work. The doctor submitted all the necessary paperwork on time too. But here's the problem - we still haven't received his payment via direct deposit! Our last payment came through without any issues about 3 days after certifying. We're going on day 14 now with nothing in our account. I checked his SDI Online account and it shows the certification was received but payment status just says "pending." Is this normal?? How long does payment typically take after certification? Did we miss something or do something wrong? Bills are piling up and I'm starting to panic. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
21 comments
Ethan Taylor
Payments used to come thru in like 2-3 days for me back in 2024 when i was on disability. if its been 2 weeks somethings def wrong. did u check if there was any messages in his inbox on the edd portal? sometimes they need more info but dont tell u except in there
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Aisha Khan
•Omg I didn't even think to check the inbox on the portal! Just checked and there's nothing there. No messages at all. That's why I'm so confused... if there was an issue wouldn't they tell us something??
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Yuki Ito
In my experience with EDD SDI, payment delays of this length usually indicate one of three things: 1. There's a hold on your claim that requires review (often happens randomly) 2. There was a discrepancy in your certification information 3. Your claim is approaching the maximum benefit period and they're verifying continued eligibility Since your husband's claim started in February, you're about 4-5 weeks into the claim period. Sometimes around this time, EDD does additional verification, especially if it's a back injury claim (those get extra scrutiny). I'd recommend checking the "Claim Details" section in your SDI Online account to see if there's a status update or notes there. Sometimes the payment status shows pending but there's additional information in the claim details.
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Aisha Khan
•Thank you for the detailed response! I just checked the Claim Details section and there's nothing unusual there. It just shows his initial claim date, benefit amount, and certification history. No notes about additional verification or anything being flagged for review. Could it just be a random processing delay? The anxiety of not knowing is killing me.
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Carmen Lopez
This happened to me in January! My payment suddenly took 12 days instead of the usual 3 after certification. When I finally reached an EDD rep (took 27 calls over 2 days!), they told me my claim had been randomly selected for a "payment verification review" - apparently they do this periodically to prevent fraud. The rep pushed my payment through immediately after confirming everything was in order. Definitely sounds like you need to speak with someone at EDD directly. The fact that there's no message or indication of a problem in your online account is typical - their system isn't great at communicating these holds.
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AstroAdventurer
•OMG 27 calls over 2 days?? That's insane! The EDD phone system is literally the worst. I tried calling them about my claim last week and couldn't get through after trying for THREE HOURS straight. Just kept getting the "we're experiencing high call volume" message and then it would hang up on me. So frustrating!!
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Andre Dupont
i had a similar issue and it was because my doctor didnt fill out something right on the medical form. but EDD never told me, they just held the payment. finally got thru to someone after like a million calls and they fixed it that day. payment came next day. u need to call them
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Aisha Khan
•Thank you - that's helpful to know! His doctor has been treating him for years so I assumed all the paperwork was correct, but maybe there was some small detail missing. You're right, I need to get on the phone with them. Ugh, not looking forward to the calling marathon...
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Zoe Papanikolaou
Have you tried using Claimyr to get through to EDD? I was in a similar situation last month with a delayed payment and couldn't get through on the phone after trying for days. Found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual EDD agent in about 20 minutes instead of fighting the phone system for hours. They have a video demo here: https://youtu.be/1X-mEsLtbmQ?si=1hcSq3KFtCr4oAmd The agent I spoke with found that there was a system flag on my account that was holding up payment. She removed it and my payment processed the next day. Definitely worth checking out if you're desperate to get this resolved quickly!
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Jamal Wilson
•is that service legit? sounds too good to be true tbh. EDD phones are impossible
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Zoe Papanikolaou
•Yes, it's legitimate. I was skeptical too but it worked exactly as advertised. They basically navigate the phone system for you and then connect you when they reach an agent. Saved me hours of frustration.
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Yuki Ito
One more thing to check - make sure your bank account information is still correct in the system. Sometimes the EDD system has glitches where direct deposit information disappears or gets changed. I've seen cases where payments were sent but to an old or incorrect account. Also, verify that the certification was fully completed. Sometimes people think they've completed the process but actually missed the final submission page. The system should have given you a confirmation number when you certified - do you have that? Lastly, double-check that the certification answered all questions appropriately. If you accidentally indicated any work or income during the period, or if there was any change in medical status indicated, it can trigger a review.
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Aisha Khan
•All great suggestions - thank you! I double-checked the bank info and it's correct. And yes, we did get a confirmation number when certifying (I wrote it down thankfully). We definitely answered that he's still disabled and not working at all. I'm thinking more and more that it's just stuck in some random review process. I'm going to try calling them tomorrow morning right when they open.
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Mei Lin
The EDD is TOTALLY BROKEN!!!! I had 3 disability claims over the past 5 years and EVERY SINGLE ONE had problems!!! Last year they randomly stopped my payments for 6 WEEKS with NO EXPLANATION and I almost got EVICTED!!!! When I finally got someone on the phone they said "oops, system error" and fixed it in 2 minutes!!!! WHY DO WE PAY TAXES FOR THIS GARBAGE SYSTEM?!?!?! The whole department needs to be FIRED!!!!
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Ethan Taylor
•preach!! my cousin works there and even she says its a mess internally. they have like 5 different computer systems that dont talk to each other and half the staff dont know how to use them all
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Carmen Lopez
Update on what you find out after contacting them! It's likely one of the issues mentioned above. In my experience, these payment delays almost always require direct contact with EDD to resolve - they rarely fix themselves. One thing that might help when you call: have all his information ready (SSN, claim ID, certification dates, etc.) and specifically ask if there are any "stop payments," "pending reviews," or "verification flags" on the account. Sometimes the regular agents don't see these unless they specifically look for them. Good luck!
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Aisha Khan
•Thank you so much for the advice! I'll definitely have all his info ready and ask about those specific flags. Will update once I get through to someone!
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Aisha Khan
UPDATE: Finally got through to EDD this morning! Turns out there was a "random eligibility review" flagged on his account. The representative said about 5% of claims get selected for these reviews each quarter. The frustrating part is they don't notify you when this happens! The good news is she verified everything looks correct and released the payment. It should be in our account within 24-48 hours. She also noted our account so this shouldn't happen for the rest of his claim period. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions! What a relief. I wish EDD would just send a notification when they're holding payments for review instead of leaving us in the dark.
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Yuki Ito
•Great news! So glad you got it resolved. Thanks for coming back to update - it's helpful for others who might experience similar issues. And I completely agree - a simple notification in the online portal would save so much stress and anxiety for claimants.
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Andre Dupont
•congrats!! how did u finally get thru to them? i might need to call them next week about my claim
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Aisha Khan
•I called exactly at 8:00am when they opened and still had to try 4 times before getting in the queue. Then waited about 35 minutes on hold. Definitely call right when they open for the best chance!
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