Thanks everyone for all the helpful advice! I'm going to report the stipend by dividing it into weekly amounts like suggested. Definitely don't want to risk an overpayment situation. I'll be sure to clearly mark it as a research stipend in the "other income" section when I certify. Really appreciate all the help!

I went through something similar with a fellowship stipend last year. The key thing that helped me was calling EDD and asking them to put a note on my file about the stipend situation. When I explained it was a research stipend paid monthly, they confirmed I should divide it weekly ($800 ÷ 4.33 = ~$185/week) and report it as "other income" during certification. Having that conversation documented on my claim really helped when they did their quarterly review - no issues at all! Also, keep all your paperwork from the university showing it's a legitimate research stipend. EDD appreciates transparency and documentation.

Hey OP, have you tried reaching out to your local assemblymember or state senator? Sometimes their office can help push things through with EDD.

I had this exact same issue a few months ago! What finally worked for me was updating my payment info during off-peak hours (like late at night or early morning when fewer people are using the system). The EDD website seems to handle updates better when there's less traffic. Also, make sure you're using the "Update Payment Method" option specifically, not trying to edit your profile general info. Sometimes they're in different sections and one works while the other doesn't. Hope this helps - I know how stressful it is when you're worried about your payments!

After seeing all the discussion, here's what I recommend: 1. For plasma donation: If you're doing this occasionally, the amounts are relatively small, and many people consider this in a grey area. If you report it, use the "other income" option during certification. 2. For medical trials: Definitely report this. The amounts are larger, and research facilities issue tax documents. 3. Remember EDD's partial income formula: They ignore the greater of $25 or 25% of your income before reducing your benefits. So reporting small amounts won't dramatically impact your benefit payment. 4. Document everything regardless of what you decide: Keep receipts, payment records, and any tax forms you receive. The safest approach is always full disclosure during certification, but many claimants make their own risk assessment regarding plasma donation specifically.

Just wanted to share my experience as someone who's been on both sides of this. I did plasma donation for about 4 months while on UI and chose to report it every time. Yes, it reduced my weekly benefit slightly, but I never had any issues or audits. The peace of mind was worth it for me - I sleep better knowing I'm fully compliant. Plus with the partial earnings formula, I was still coming out ahead financially. Made about $160/week from plasma, they ignored the first $40 (25% of $160), so only $120 was deducted from my $400 WBA. Still got $280 in UI plus the $160 from plasma = $440 total vs just $400 if I hadn't done anything. My advice: report it, keep good records, and don't stress about it. The system is actually designed to encourage people to earn some income while on benefits, not punish them for it.

I'm brand new to this community but have been desperately searching for solutions to my EDD nightmare, and this thread is exactly what I needed to find! I've been stuck with missing payments for 5 weeks now after completing my ID.me verification in mid-January. Like so many others here, I never received any confirmation that the verification was properly linked to my EDD account. Reading through everyone's experiences has been both eye-opening and incredibly frustrating - the fact that this identity verification flag issue is affecting 90% of people who verified over 60 days ago should be front-page news, not something we have to discover through community detective work! I've wasted countless hours calling the main EDD lines with zero success. I'm definitely going to try the DI line strategy (800-480-3287) that Maya discovered and multiple people have confirmed works. Having specific terminology like "identity verification flags" and "ID.me integration status" to mention gives me actual hope for the first time in weeks. It's ridiculous that we need workarounds like this, but I'm so grateful this community exists to share these solutions. Thank you to everyone who took the time to update with their success stories - especially Emma, Maya, and Jayden. Your detailed experiences are literally saving people's sanity and financial situations. I'll make sure to come back and update once I hopefully get through!

I'm completely new to this community but stumbled across this thread while desperately searching for EDD solutions, and wow - you all have basically solved the mystery I've been trying to crack for 6 weeks! I completed my ID.me verification back in early January and have been stuck with "pending" payments ever since, with absolutely no communication from EDD about what was wrong. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been both a huge relief (knowing I didn't mess something up) and incredibly frustrating (realizing this is such a widespread system issue that EDD isn't even acknowledging). The identity verification flag problem that Maya, Jayden, and others discovered explains EVERYTHING. I'm definitely going to try the DI line workaround (800-480-3287) tomorrow morning and ask specifically about "identity verification flags" and "ID.me integration status." After weeks of getting absolutely nowhere with the main customer service lines, having a concrete strategy and specific terminology to use feels like finding a treasure map. It's honestly criminal that we have to become private investigators on community forums just to figure out basic system problems that are clearly affecting thousands of people. But I'm so grateful this community exists and that people like Emma, Maya, and Jayden took the time to come back and share their solutions. I'll definitely update once I hopefully get through - fingers crossed this finally breaks the logjam!

Just wanted to update that I called using the tips people shared here and FINALLY got through to a person! You were right - my card was flagged for suspicious activity because I tried multiple ATMs. They removed the block and my card is working again. Thank you all SO MUCH for your help! For anyone else with this problem, what worked for me was calling at 8:45am and pressing 0 three times during the initial greeting, then following the prompts to enter my card number. Was on hold for 32 minutes but eventually got a real person who fixed it in about 5 minutes.

As someone who's dealt with similar Money Network issues, I wanted to add that if you're still having trouble getting through, try downloading the Money Network mobile app first to see if you can at least check your balance and transaction history. Sometimes the app will show you exactly why your card was blocked (like "security hold" or "fraud alert") which gives you specific language to use when you finally reach a representative. Also, if your card stays blocked and you can't get through by tomorrow, consider going to your local EDD office if there's one nearby. They can sometimes help with Money Network issues directly or at least escalate your case. I know it's not ideal with everything being appointment-based now, but for urgent situations like rent being due, they might be able to help same-day. Good luck - this system is so broken but you'll get through it!