I feel your pain - this is such a nightmare situation! I've been dealing with DEO issues on and off for the past year and here's what I've learned: definitely try calling right at 7:30am when they open, keep a detailed log of every time you call (date, time, how long you waited, what happened), and be persistent with that email to DEO.Firstreview@deo.myflorida.com. One thing that helped me was also reaching out to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity on their Facebook page - sometimes they'll respond to public posts when other methods fail. It sounds desperate but when you're facing eviction, you use every tool available. Also, if you haven't already, document your financial hardship situation (overdue bills, rent notices, etc.) because this can help prioritize your case when you do get through to someone. The state rep option is definitely worth trying too - their constituent services staff deal with DEO issues regularly and know how to escalate properly. Keep claiming your weeks no matter what, and hang in there. The system is broken but most claims do eventually get resolved.

I'm in a similar situation - filed my claim on June 20th and it's been stuck in pending status for almost 3 weeks now. Reading through everyone's suggestions here has been really helpful! I'm going to try the email to DEO.Firstreview@deo.myflorida.com first thing tomorrow morning, and then attempt calling right at 7:30am like several people suggested. Has anyone had success with the Claimyr service that @Miguel Alvarez mentioned? I'm a bit hesitant about third-party services but if it actually works, it might be worth the cost given how much I'm losing by not getting my benefits. The stress of this whole situation is really getting to me - I never expected it to be this difficult to get unemployment benefits when you legitimately qualify for them. @Sofia Martinez, please keep us updated on what works for you! I think a lot of us are in the same boat right now and could benefit from knowing which approach actually gets results.

Congratulations on landing the job! Just to add one more perspective - I went through this same situation about 6 months ago and everything worked out fine following the advice others have given here. The key things that helped me were: 1) Keep doing ALL 5 work searches every week until July 5th (I know it feels pointless but DEO doesn't care), 2) Answer YES when they ask about accepting work and put your start date, 3) Still answer YES to being available for work until you actually start. I was paranoid about messing something up so I also called the employer to double-confirm my start date a week before starting. The transition from UI to regular paychecks went smoothly and I didn't lose any benefits I was entitled to. You're in the home stretch - just keep following the same routine for 3 more weeks!

I went through this exact same situation last fall! One thing I want to emphasize that others have touched on - make absolutely sure you understand the difference between "accepting a job offer" and "starting work" when filling out your weekly claims. DEO considers you unemployed until your actual first day of work, not when you accept the offer. I made the mistake of overthinking this and almost talked myself out of claiming benefits I was entitled to. Also, if your new employer offers any pre-employment activities (like orientation, paperwork, drug testing, etc.) before your official start date, those usually don't count as "work" unless you're being paid for them. Just keep doing exactly what you've been doing - the 5 work searches, weekly claims, staying available - until July 5th. The system is set up to handle this transition period, even though it doesn't feel very intuitive! Best of luck with the new job!

hey guys i have a kinda related question - if I get a job but it doesn't start for 3 weeks do I still claim those weeks or does my claim end when I accept the offer even if I'm not getting paid yet??

Glad to hear your payment finally went through! This is actually pretty common - I've seen this happen to several people with their final payments. The DEO does seem to put extra scrutiny on the last payment, probably to make sure everything adds up correctly before they close out your claim. For anyone else reading this who might be in a similar situation, just keep checking your account daily and try not to panic if it takes a few extra days. The system usually works itself out, it's just nerve-wracking when you're depending on that money!

One important detail about the ID.me video verification option: make sure you're initiating this process directly through the link in your CONNECT portal. If you just go to ID.me separately, the verification won't automatically link to your DEO account even if you complete it successfully. I made this mistake and had to do the whole process twice.

I'm so glad to see this thread helped you get through the verification process! The CareerSource suggestion was brilliant - they really are underutilized resources for these kinds of technical issues. For anyone else reading this who might be in a similar situation, I'd also recommend checking if your local library has phones available for public use. Some branches have phones specifically for people dealing with government services, and the librarians are usually pretty understanding about these kinds of urgent situations. The key thing is just getting access to ANY working phone number temporarily, even if it's not "yours" - as long as you can receive the verification text in real time, ID.me will accept it.

One additional note - after the first payment goes through following your bank change, make sure your next claimed weeks don't have any issues. Sometimes there can be a cascade effect where the first delay triggers additional verification requirements. If you don't receive your payment by next Tuesday (which would be 7 business days), then you should definitely contact DEO directly to ensure there isn't something else going on with your claim.

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago when I switched from my credit union to TD Bank. The waiting period is nerve-wracking, especially when you have bills coming due! In my case, it took exactly 6 business days for the payment to show up in my new account. One thing that helped me during the wait was setting up account alerts on my new Chase account so I'd get notified immediately when the deposit hit. Also, if you haven't already, take a screenshot of your CONNECT account showing the "processed" status and your updated bank info - just in case you need it later if something goes wrong. The good news is that once this first payment clears, future payments should go back to the normal 1-2 day processing time. Hang in there - you're probably just a day or two away from seeing that deposit!