What is unemployment tax number? California EDD employer account explained

Oh that's actually really reassuring. I was worried I was missing some critical piece of information. So the stuff I put in when I applied should be enough then? I included the company name, address, and my last day which was about six weeks ago.

Yeah, what you described covers it. EDD uses what you submitted to notify your former employer anyway, so they handle the employer-side numbers themselves.

Agree with this. The tax number is on the employer's quarterly tax filings with EDD, stuff like the DE 9 or DE 9C forms. Claimants never touch those.

Wait my UI Online also shows pending weeks and I did do ID.me but maybe it didn't link right? This is making me nervous.

Worth double-checking by logging into ID.me directly and making sure your EDD connection is showing as active. If it still looks stuck after that, phoning EDD to have someone look at your specific file is probably the fastest way to know for sure.

Same thing happened to me with the ID.me link not showing up on EDD's side. Took a week before it registered. The pending status is stressful but it's often just the system catching up.

To add onto this, the base period wages thing is worth understanding. EDD looks at your earnings across roughly the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you filed. The highest single quarter is what determines your weekly amount, which runs somewhere between $40 and $450. The employer's tax account is how those wages got reported to EDD in the first place, so it matters indirectly but you as the claimant never deal with that number.

Exactly right on the base period. And if for some reason the standard base period doesn't give you enough wages to qualify, EDD automatically looks at the alternate base period instead. It's worth knowing about if you had a gap in work before the layoff.

So EDD already has my wages on file from my employer's tax filings? I didn't have to submit pay stubs or anything?

Right, your employer reported your wages to EDD as part of their quarterly tax filings. That's how the system works. You just had to tell EDD you worked there and give the dates.

Yeah I think I overcomplicated it in my head. HR mentioned the tax number in passing and I spiraled into thinking I'd messed up my application somehow.

The HR person probably just had it on her mind because employers have to respond to EDD after you file. EDD sends the employer a notice and the employer has to reply within 10 days. The tax number and account stuff is part of their side of that process.

This is accurate but I'll admit I thought the same wrong thing for years. The paystub has so many deductions it's easy to assume one of them goes toward unemployment.

And EDD doesn't exactly go out of its way to explain it clearly either. The number of people I've seen on here say they 'paid into unemployment for X years' is wild. You never paid in directly, your employer did.

Does it matter for the claim though? Like does knowing who paid the tax change anything about how much you get?

No, it doesn't change your weekly amount at all. That's based purely on your own wages from the base period. It's just important to know so you don't feel like you're taking something that wasn't yours to take, because you're not.

That actually might be exactly what the HR person was referring to! She was going through some kind of checklist and mentioned it. Now it makes way more sense why she brought it up.

Yeah it was probably just part of their standard offboarding documentation. Employers have to keep track of that number for all their EDD filings, so it shows up in their internal processes even when it has nothing to do with the former employee's claim.

I actually got that letter last week. My weekly amount looks about right for what I was earning. Good to know I should double-check it carefully.

Definitely review it. If your base period wages were counted correctly you should be fine but if you think a quarter is missing or wrong it's worth questioning within that 30-day window.

The DE 429Z is not an approval letter though, right? I was confused about this. Getting it doesn't mean EDD decided you're eligible?

Correct, the DE 429Z shows what your claim could pay if you're found eligible, not that EDD has decided in your favor. For a layoff with no eligibility questions, it usually works out, but technically EDD makes the eligibility call separately. If there were any issues they'd send a Notice of Determination, the DE 1080CZ.

No I was definitely a regular W-2 employee, not any kind of contractor. Full-time warehouse associate for almost three years.

Then you're in a solid position. Three years of wages in EDD's system means you almost certainly have a valid claim and your base period should be well above the minimum threshold.

The phone interview and the employer's tax number are completely separate things. EDD schedules a phone interview when there's a question about your eligibility, like if you quit or were fired for a reason that might matter. For a layoff, there usually isn't a phone interview at all unless EDD has a specific question. Your employer gets a notice asking them to respond about why you stopped working, that's on their end and uses their account info.

oh ok so for a layoff I might not even have one? that's good to know. I was panicking thinking they were going to put me on a call with my boss and cross-examine us both

If EDD does schedule an interview, you'd get a notice called a DE 4800 in the mail with the date and time on it. It's also on your UI Online homepage. The interviewer phones at that time. It's separate calls, not a joint one.

How long did it take for the pending weeks to actually show payment after the interview?

About a week and a half after the interview for me. The agent told me the specific weeks that were still needing certification and I made sure those were done. Things moved from there.

I did get that notice I think. I need to go check if I registered in time. I remember starting the CalJOBS thing but I'm not sure I finished posting the resume.

Log into CalJOBS and check your profile. If your resume is listed as posted and your profile is complete you should be okay. If not, finish it right away and don't wait.

Don't panic but definitely finish it today if you're not sure. The 21-day clock is real and EDD does check.

This is a good explanation of why employers care about their EDD account numbers so much. It's how all their reporting connects.

Exactly. And employers have to respond to EDD's claim notices within 10 days or they lose the ability to appeal EDD's decision on the claim. So keeping that account number and contact info accurate matters a lot for them.

I actually just certified yesterday! First time was a little confusing because it covered two weeks at once including something about a waiting week, but I got through it.

The first certification usually does cover the unpaid waiting week plus one paid week. So you'll see payment for the second week but not the first. That's normal, not a glitch.

That explains why the amount looked lower than I expected. I was about to send EDD a message about it.

wait so the default is a Money Network card? I didn't even know that. I thought it was going straight to my bank

Yeah if you don't set up direct deposit in myEDD, EDD sends your payments to a Money Network prepaid debit card. You can switch it to bank direct deposit or a paper check through your myEDD account settings.

i need to go check my settings right now lol

The 10 percent withholding option is something I wish I'd known about earlier. I ended up owing more than I expected at tax time my first year on unemployment because I didn't elect it.

It's genuinely one of the things EDD doesn't emphasize enough during the application. Easy to elect, easier to forget.

Good point to raise. There are a lot of EDD-related scams that spike when unemployment is in the news. EDD's legitimate contacts come through mail, UI Online messages, and scheduled phone interviews at times listed on notices they already sent you.

Noted, that's slightly terrifying but good to know. I'll be careful.

Amended employer filings causing overpayments is rare but real. Usually it's a reporting error on the employer's end. Worth keeping pay stubs for a while after a claim is active just in case something like this comes up.

Agreed on keeping the pay stubs. Also worth noting that a non-fraud overpayment still has to be repaid, but you can apply for a waiver on Form DE 1446UI if repaying it would be a serious hardship and the overpayment wasn't your fault.

This whole thread answered way more than my original question and I appreciate it. Feeling much better about where my claim stands now. Pending weeks are still showing but sounds like that might be the ID.me link issue someone mentioned earlier.

ID.me link is a common cause of pending weeks early in a claim. If it doesn't clear up after another week or so, using the live chat from the Help button in UI Online during their 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. window on weekdays is a decent way to get eyes on your specific file without navigating the phone lines.

The live chat has actually been faster for me than the phone for straightforward questions. Worth trying for the ID.me issue.

wait so part time work doesn't automatically kill your claim? I was thinking about picking up a few shifts and thought I'd have to pause everything

No, part-time earnings just reduce what EDD pays you that week using the formula I described. You have to report it honestly when you certify though, every week you worked and how much you earned before taxes.

ok that changes things. I've been turning down shifts thinking it would mess up my claim.

This is actually really useful context. I was also slightly confused by my maximum benefit amount calculation but maybe it's the same base period thing.

The EDD Unemployment Benefit Calculator on EDD's site can help you estimate it based on your own wage history. If your highest-earning quarter is recent, it may fall outside the standard base period window, which is why the alternate base period exists, but it only kicks in if the standard one doesn't give you a valid claim at all.

The 'keep certifying during an appeal' part is so important. A lot of people stop certifying because they think there's no point, then win the appeal and find out those uncertified weeks can't be paid out.

Exactly right. The certification and the appeal are independent processes. One doesn't pause the other.

Had to learn this the hard way on a previous claim years ago. Stopped certifying during a dispute and missed out on weeks I would have been entitled to. Definitely certify every period no matter what else is happening with the claim.