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If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
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An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
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Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
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This is such valuable information! I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - 4 penalty weeks and just started a part-time gig that puts me over my weekly benefit amount. I was panicking thinking I'd never get through my penalty period, but reading through all these responses (especially your final update with EDD confirmation) gives me so much peace of mind. For anyone else reading this thread in the future: the key takeaways seem to be 1) Keep certifying every two weeks no matter what, 2) Report ALL earnings accurately, 3) Make sure you're still meeting other eligibility requirements (available for work, job searching, etc.), and 4) Weeks with excessive earnings DO count toward penalty weeks as long as you're otherwise eligible. Thanks for sharing your experience and coming back with the official confirmation from EDD!
This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm actually in week 3 of my penalty weeks right now and was getting so stressed about whether my weekend shifts at a local restaurant were messing up my progress. Reading everyone's experiences and especially the OP's confirmation from EDD has been such a relief. One thing I want to add for future readers - make sure you're still doing your work search activities even during penalty weeks! I almost got lazy about it thinking "what's the point, I'm not getting paid anyway" but realized that could disqualify me from serving the penalty weeks properly. Keep treating it like a regular claim in every way except the payment part. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences here - this community is so much more helpful than trying to navigate EDD's confusing website alone!
I'm so glad you posted this question and got it resolved! I'm actually dealing with something similar right now - I have 3 penalty weeks left to serve and just picked up some freelance work that varies week to week. Some weeks I'm under my benefit amount, others I'm way over. Reading through this whole thread (especially your update with the EDD confirmation) has been incredibly reassuring. I was worried that the weeks where I earn too much wouldn't count and I'd be stuck serving penalty weeks forever. Now I know I just need to keep certifying accurately and all weeks will count as long as I'm meeting the other requirements. Quick question for anyone who might know - do you still have to do the work search requirement during penalty weeks? I've been doing it just to be safe, but wasn't sure if it was actually required since you're not getting paid anyway. Thanks again for sharing your experience and coming back with the official answer!
Yes, you absolutely need to keep doing your work search requirements during penalty weeks! I learned this the hard way when I first started my penalty period - I thought since I wasn't getting paid, I could skip the job search activities. But when I talked to the EDD specialist, she made it very clear that you have to meet ALL eligibility requirements during penalty weeks, including actively searching for work. The penalty is about not getting paid, but you still need to prove you're available and looking for full-time work. If you stop doing work searches, that could actually disqualify you from serving the penalty weeks properly and potentially reset your progress. Keep documenting your job search activities just like you would during a regular claim. Better safe than sorry with EDD!
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Update on wait times: I attended a legal clinic for EDD claimants last week, and the attorneys there mentioned that decision times have actually increased in the past few months. They're seeing most decisions taking 12-14 weeks now, with some taking up to 16 weeks. This is apparently due to staff shortages at the Appeals Board and a recent increase in appeal filings. If you hit the 14-week mark without a decision, they recommended sending a formal inquiry letter to the Appeals Board citing California Unemployment Insurance Code Section 1336, which states decisions should be prompt. Include your case number, hearing date, and contact information. This sometimes helps move cases that have gotten stuck in the queue.
Thanks for this update. I'm at 12 weeks now, so it sounds like I might still have a bit more waiting to do. I'm definitely going to call the Appeals Board tomorrow and if I don't get anywhere, I'll try the formal letter approach at 14 weeks. Really appreciate all the helpful advice everyone's sharing!
I'm going through a similar situation right now - had my appeal hearing in September for a "voluntary quit" disqualification (which was actually a layoff, but EDD coded it wrong). It's been about 10 weeks and still no decision letter. Reading everyone's experiences here is both reassuring and terrifying at the same time! I've been calling the Appeals Board every few weeks and they just keep saying "still under review by the Administrative Law Judge." At least I know from this thread that 12-14 weeks seems to be the new normal. The financial stress is unreal though - I've had to move back in with family and I'm basically living off credit cards at this point. One thing I wanted to add - my local legal aid office told me that if you're facing eviction or utilities being shut off while waiting for your appeal decision, you can request an "expedited review" from the Appeals Board. They said it doesn't guarantee faster processing, but they're supposed to flag urgent cases. Might be worth asking about if anyone is in a really desperate situation. Hang in there everyone - sounds like most people eventually get their decisions, it's just a matter of surviving the wait! 😩
Wow, I had no idea about the expedited review option! That's really valuable information. I'm not quite at the eviction stage yet but my electric bill is definitely getting scary. It's frustrating that they have options like this but don't really publicize them - feels like you have to know someone who knows someone to find out about these things. Sorry you're dealing with the same waiting game. The "voluntary quit" vs layoff coding issue sounds infuriating on top of everything else. At least we're all in this together! Thanks for sharing the legal aid tip - I'm going to look into what resources are available in my area too.
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Has anyone tried the online chat feature on the unemployment website? I've had some success with that in the past.
I tried it but kept getting disconnected. Super frustrating 😤
It worked for me! But I had to wait in the queue for like 2 hours. Bring a book lol
I'm new here but going through the same nightmare! Been trying to reach EDD for weeks about my pending claim. Reading through all these suggestions is really helpful - I had no idea about contacting state reps or that there might be Facebook groups for this. @Aisha Hussain have you made any progress since posting this? Also curious if anyone knows the best time of day to try the online chat that @Dmitry Smirnov mentioned. This whole process is so stressful but at least we're not alone in this struggle!
Hey @Mila Walker! Welcome to the group - sorry you're dealing with this too but you're definitely not alone. I've been fighting with EDD for about 2 months now and this community has been a lifesaver. @Javier Hernandez is right about the early morning thing - I ve'had better luck with chat around 8 AM. Also wanted to add that if you re'going to try that claimyr service @Yuki Sato mentioned, maybe wait a bit and see if the free methods work first? I m still'on the fence about paying for something that should be free. Keep us posted on how it goes!
@Mila Walker welcome to the club nobody wants to be in! 😔 I ve'been battling EDD for about a month myself and this thread has been incredibly helpful. Just wanted to add that I ve'found Tuesday and Wednesday mornings tend to have shorter wait times - weekends and Mondays are absolutely brutal. Also, don t'forget to check your EDD inbox regularly because sometimes they send important notices that can get buried. One thing that helped me was setting up alerts on my phone to remind me to check every few hours. The system is definitely broken but seeing people like @Sofia Torres finally get approved gives me hope. We got this! 💪
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UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know that the reopen button appeared exactly 4 business days after my last payment, just like some of you suggested. The system let me complete the reopening process without any issues. Thanks for all your help and advice!
Great to hear! Make sure to certify as soon as the weeks become available, and remember to document your work search activities thoroughly.
Glad you got it sorted out! For anyone else dealing with this issue, I'd recommend bookmarking this thread - it's got all the real info you need. The 4-day processing period seems to be the most reliable timeline based on everyone's experiences here. Also worth noting that if you're in seasonal work like construction or entertainment, it might be worth keeping a log of when you close/reopen claims so you can predict the timing better for future gaps. The EDD system is unpredictable enough without having to guess about processing times!
Caleb Bell
I'm dealing with a very similar situation right now! My regular UI benefits just exhausted last week and I'm seeing that same confusing "paid all benefits" message. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea about the difference between benefit exhaustion and benefit year ending. One thing I wanted to add that might help others: I found out from my local WorkSource office that they sometimes have emergency assistance funds available for people in this exact gap period. It's not much, but they helped me with a one-time utility payment while I'm waiting to figure out my next steps. They also connected me with some local job training programs that might qualify for the Training Extension if I decide to go that route. Also, for anyone struggling to get through to EDD - I tried calling right at 8:00 AM when they open and had better luck than calling later in the day. Still took about 45 minutes on hold, but at least I didn't get the busy signal. The rep was actually pretty helpful once I got through and explained everything clearly. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences here - it's really reassuring to know I'm not the only one who found this whole process confusing!
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Connor O'Neill
•That's really helpful info about the WorkSource office having emergency assistance funds! I had no idea they offered that kind of support during the gap period. Definitely going to look into that myself since I'm in a similar boat. The tip about calling right at 8 AM is gold too - I've been calling randomly throughout the day and always hitting busy signals. Makes sense that first thing in the morning would be better before the lines get completely jammed. Thanks for sharing what worked for you and glad you found this thread as helpful as I did!
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Omar Farouk
I'm going through almost the exact same thing right now! Just hit that dreaded $0 balance last week with 4 months still left on my benefit year. Like everyone else has said, that "paid all benefits" message is SO misleading - I spent days thinking I missed some step or deadline. What's really helped me after reading all these responses is understanding that this is actually pretty normal and there ARE steps you can take. I just applied for CalFresh yesterday and was surprised how straightforward the online application was. Also called 211 like someone mentioned above and they connected me with a local rent assistance program I didn't even know existed. One thing I wanted to add that might help others - if you're doing any gig work or side jobs while waiting this out, make sure you report those earnings properly if you do end up qualifying for a new claim later. I learned from a friend who works at EDD that they cross-check everything now and unreported income can cause major headaches down the road. The job market is definitely rough right now but at least knowing what our actual options are (instead of being confused and panicking) makes it feel more manageable. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread has been more helpful than anything I found on the official EDD website!
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