Can I withdraw my California EDD unemployment claim and start over?

That's what I was afraid of - losing my original claim date. Do you know if there's an actual form or process for requesting a withdrawal, or is it something you have to do over the phone?

From what I know it has to be done by contacting EDD directly, either by phone or in writing. There's no self-service withdrawal option in UI Online that I've ever seen. Which brings you right back to the problem of actually getting someone on the phone lol.

yeah definitely don't just refile without talking to someone first. I made a similar mistake early on and it created a huge mess with duplicate claim issues that took months to sort out

Honestly I'm not 100% sure what I entered. I was in a weird situation where I had a mix of being laid off and also some hours were reduced before the full layoff. I might have classified it wrong. And I didn't know employers could contest claims - is that common?

Super common actually. Employers have like 10 days to respond to a claim notice from EDD and many of them dispute anything that could affect their UI tax rates. If your situation was complicated (partial layoff, reduced hours before termination) there's a decent chance your employer characterized the separation differently than you did.

this happened to me too!! my company said i quit voluntarily when they definitely eliminated my position. took forever to resolve through adjudication

Wait this actually worked? I've been trying to get through on the phone for weeks and I just get the 'we cannot take your call' message and it hangs up. I'll look into this.

I've heard of Claimyr before. Did they actually get you to a live person or just leave you on hold?

Got to a live person. The hold time wasn't zero but it was way better than trying myself - I'd been getting disconnected every time before that.

gonna check this out. been trying to get through to EDD for 3 weeks about my adjudication and nothing

Oh wow I had no idea that could happen. That's a really important point. So the base period is locked in based on when you originally file?

Yes, the base period is determined by when you file, not when you lost your job. So if you wait and refile months later the base period shifts and if you had lower wages in those quarters compared to the original base period your WBA goes down. It really can make a big difference.

This is correct and it's one of the main reasons people get burned by withdrawing. The benefit year and base period calculation are tied to your original filing date.

same happened to my cousin she withdrew and then her new claim was way less money per week

Yes, totally different things. Withdrawing a claim means you're canceling it entirely and starting over fresh. An appeal is when EDD has made a determination you disagree with and you're asking for a formal review. OP's situation is different from both - they're in adjudication which means EDD hasn't made a final determination yet. So right now there's nothing to appeal and withdrawing would be risky. They're kind of stuck waiting unless they can get someone on the phone.

oh okay that makes way more sense. I mixed those up. so the adjudication IS the process before they decide, not after the decision?

Exactly. Adjudication is EDD's internal investigation process where they gather info and make a determination. After adjudication they issue a notice of determination. THAT'S what triggers appeal rights if you disagree with the outcome.

Okay this thread is really helping me understand the process better. I don't think I want to appeal or withdraw - I just want to know what's actually happening with my claim.

8 weeks?? How did you survive financially waiting that long? Did you get backpay for all those weeks once it was resolved?

Yes once it resolved I got all the weeks paid at once. I had to keep certifying every week even while in adjudication to make sure I'd get paid for those weeks when it cleared. Did you continue certifying? That's really important.

Yes I kept certifying, I read somewhere that you're supposed to continue even during adjudication. Glad I did that.

the backpay thing is real - i got like 9 weeks of payments all at once when mine cleared. it's stressful waiting but keep certifying

I've been checking my mail pretty consistently but I've gotten nothing. No letters, no interview notice, nothing. Just silence for 5 weeks.

That's strange. You might also want to double check that EDD has your current mailing address - sometimes people move and forget to update it. You can verify your address on the UI Online portal in your account settings.

Also check your spam folder in email - I got a message about my interview buried in spam and almost missed it

Yeah I think I came into this thread thinking withdrawal was maybe a clean reset button and I'm leaving understanding it's really not. Definitely need to talk to an agent first.

Right - and honestly when you DO get an agent on the phone, explain exactly what you explained here - that you filed in a rush and aren't sure if you entered the separation reason correctly for a complicated layoff situation. They can often pull up your claim and verify what's in the system and tell you if there's a discrepancy flagging the adjudication.

Did you have to give them a lot of personal info to use it?

Just standard stuff to set up the callback, nothing crazy. The site is claimyr.com if you want to check it out. They explain how it works pretty clearly.

okay I might actually try this too, I've been stuck on a different issue for weeks and cannot get through

Yes you absolutely can and SHOULD continue certifying every week during adjudication. Your certifications are basically your weekly claims for payment. When adjudication resolves and your claim is approved, EDD pays out all the certified weeks that were pending. If you stop certifying during adjudication you could lose those weeks.

ohhhh okay I did not know that thank you. I stopped certifying after 2 weeks because I thought the hold meant I couldn't. is it too late to go back and certify those weeks?

You can try doing late certifications - UI Online sometimes allows you to certify late weeks but there may be limits. I'd call EDD about this ASAP, this is something you really need to clarify with an agent because late certifications have their own set of rules.

yeah late certs can be tricky. some weeks you can go back and do others you might not be able to. definitely get on the phone with EDD about this

That's exactly why I ended up trying Claimyr honestly. I got to the point where I physically couldn't keep spending hours a day redialing. Once I got through and talked to an actual agent it was almost comically easy to get information - the system just makes it impossible to reach a human in the first place.

I looked up Claimyr after seeing it mentioned here. Does it work for the main EDD UI line specifically or just certain numbers?

Worked for the main UI line for me. claimyr.com has the details on how the whole thing works.

I hadn't thought about it from that angle. My relationship with my former employer wasn't great at the end - it's very possible they contested it. I honestly don't know what they said to EDD.

If that's the case you may get a phone interview scheduled where EDD talks to you and the employer separately to get both sides. That's pretty standard for contested separation reason cases. You'll want to have documentation ready - any written notices of layoff, emails about the position elimination, HR communications, whatever you have.

Good advice. If this ends up being an employer dispute adjudication the documentation you have will be really important. Text messages, emails, offer letters, termination notices - all of it can help establish the facts.

Sure - the base period is basically the time window EDD looks at to calculate your weekly benefit amount (WBA). For most claims it's the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you filed. So if you filed in February 2025 for example, they'd typically look at your wages from October 2023 through September 2024. Higher wages in that base period generally means a higher weekly benefit amount.

oh that makes sense! so if you wait a long time to refile the base period window shifts and might include lower wage quarters?

Exactly - or alternatively quarters where you had less work. Which is why withdrawing a claim and refiling later can result in a lower WBA even if your employment history overall was solid.

This is what got me when I withdrew and refiled - the base period shift caught me totally off guard. Wish someone had explained this to me first.

Yes - when I finally got through (using Claimyr), the agent was able to see exactly what was in my claim record and explain what was flagged. For some things they can add notes right there, for others they said they'd forward it to the adjudication unit. It varied but at minimum I got actual information about what was happening instead of staring at a status screen with no updates.

Agents can do quite a bit on a call depending on the issue - update contact info, clarify separation details, explain adjudication status, schedule follow-ups. It's not always an instant fix but it usually at least gets things moving.

okay that's good to know. I have a different issue going on and wasn't sure if calling would actually accomplish anything. Maybe I'll finally try to get through.

Thank you for this, seriously. The financial stress part is so real. I have maybe 2-3 more weeks before I'm in real trouble. Did EDD contact you or did you have to keep initiating?

They eventually scheduled a phone interview - I got a letter about 5 weeks in. The interview was like 20 minutes, went over the circumstances of the separation, and then I got my determination letter about a week after the interview. Once the interview happened things moved pretty quickly.

That gives me hope that there's still a process happening even without communication. I'll keep certifying and try harder to get through to someone to check the status.

I had no idea rescission was even a thing. But yeah, I'm not going to count on that being available. This thread has convinced me that withdrawal is really a last resort, not a first move.

honestly same, I came in thinking withdrawing might be a legitimate option for my situation and now I'm thinking very differently about it

Typically you'd need to make the request in writing to EDD - either through UI Online messaging or by mailing/faxing a written request. The agent on the phone can tell you exactly what they need for your specific situation. Don't just do it verbally and assume it's done.

Yeah get it in writing is the key point. And make sure you get confirmation back from EDD that the withdrawal was processed. Don't assume anything with EDD until you have written confirmation.

Makes sense. Written confirmation for everything with EDD - learned that lesson the hard way with a different issue.

Really glad you got answers! Make sure you have all your documentation ready for that phone interview - anything that shows your position was eliminated (emails, org charts, layoff notices, etc.). Good luck, employer dispute adjudications are very winnable when the facts are on your side.

So happy this had a good outcome!! And thank you for coming back to update - this thread is going to help a lot of people who search for this same question.

Perfect example of why getting to an actual agent is so important. Good luck with your interview!!

this is such a good update. and honestly confirms that withdrawal almost never makes sense as a first move