PA UC Money Network debit card payments - anyone received theirs yet?
Hey everyone, I'm seriously stressing out about my PA unemployment payments. I recently switched to the Money Network debit card option instead of direct deposit (my bank was putting 5-day holds on UC deposits). It's been 9 days since my last weekly claim was marked as 'payment issued' but NOTHING has shown up on my card yet! The UC dashboard shows payments were processed, but my card balance is still $0. First time using this card system and I'm getting worried. Is this normal delay for the first payment to a new card? Has anyone else gotten their UC benefits loaded to their debit card recently? How long did yours take?
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Omar Farouk
got mine yesterdy. took about 7 business days for first payment to hit the card after switching from direct deposit. they dont tell u but the first payment takes longer.
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Freya Christensen
•That gives me some hope! Yesterday was business day 7 for me... so maybe it'll show up today or tomorrow? Did your dashboard show it was paid days before it actually hit your card too?
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Chloe Davis
The first payment to the Money Network card typically takes 7-10 business days to process. This is because they have to create and mail your card first, then process the payment to it. After the initial setup, payments should post within 2 business days of being issued. Have you received the physical card in the mail yet? If you have the card but no payment after showing 'payment issued' for more than 10 business days, you should contact PA UC to verify there's not a problem with your account.
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Freya Christensen
•Yes, I already got the physical card in the mail about 2 weeks ago and activated it right away. It just shows a zero balance when I check online or call the automated system. The UC portal has shown 'payment issued' since last Monday for my last two weekly claims. So it's been 7 business days for the first payment and 5 for the second one. I'll give it another day or two before panicking!
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AstroAlpha
I went through the EXACT same thing back in January!!! The UC website said payment issued but nothing on my card for almost TWO WEEKS. I called Money Network and they said they didn't even see pending deposits. THEN suddenly one day everything appeared at once - 3 weeks of payments dumped onto my card the same day. No explanation, no warning. The whole system is a JOKE.
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Diego Chavez
•This is really common with the first Money Network card payments. I work with claimants all the time who experience this delay. The system doesn't communicate the payment status well between PA Treasury (who issues payments) and Money Network (who loads the cards). The good news is that once your first payment posts, future payments usually arrive within 2 business days. If you keep having problems after 2 weeks though, you might need to have a UC rep check if there's a routing issue with your payments.
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Anastasia Smirnova
If you're having trouble reaching someone at PA UC to check on your payment status, you might want to try using Claimyr (claimyr.com). I was in the same situation last month and couldn't get through on the phone after trying for days. Claimyr connected me to a PA UC agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2. The agent was able to confirm that my payments were in process and gave me an exact date when they would hit my card.
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Freya Christensen
•I've never heard of Claimyr before. Does it actually work? I've been trying to call UC for days and either get a busy signal or it hangs up on me after saying they're experiencing high call volume. I'll check out that video - at this point I just need to talk to someone who can tell me what's going on with my money!
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Omar Farouk
•i used it to fix my claim back in february. got thru in like 30 min when i couldnt get anyone on phone for 2 weeks straight. worth it if ur stressed about ur money
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Sean O'Brien
Just wanted to share that my husband had this same problem with his UC payments and Money Network card. We called the Treasury Department directly instead of UC (different phone number) and they were able to see that his payments were stuck in some kind of processing queue. They fixed it right away and all the pending payments hit his card the next day. Try calling Treasury at 877-869-1956 if UC isn't helping.
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Freya Christensen
•Thank you!! I didn't even know contacting Treasury directly was an option. I'll try that number tomorrow morning if my payment doesn't show up by then. Really appreciate the tip!
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Zara Shah
Anyone else think it's ridiculous that PA UC even uses these stupid debit cards? I had nothing but problems with mine. Fees for everything, ATMs never work right, balance never updates properly. They should just let everyone do direct deposit. My sister lives in Ohio and they never have these problems with their unemployment system.
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AstroAlpha
•TOTALLY AGREE!!! The Money Network cards are THE WORST! Mine got declined at random stores for no reason, even with money on it. And trying to transfer money to my bank account took FOREVER. PA UC is living in the stone age with these cards.
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Diego Chavez
•Pennsylvania does offer direct deposit as an option - that's actually the default payment method. The Money Network cards are an alternative for claimants who either don't have bank accounts or who prefer not to use direct deposit. While there are some fees associated with certain types of transactions, basic purchases and one withdrawal per deposit period should be fee-free. If you're having problems with your card, you can switch to direct deposit on your dashboard under payment options.
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Freya Christensen
UPDATE: My payment finally showed up on my Money Network card this morning! All at once - both weeks' worth of payments appeared. Seems like the first card payment really does take 8-10 business days like some of you mentioned. Thanks everyone for the advice and reassurance - was really starting to panic about this!
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Chloe Davis
•That's great news! Yes, the first payment cycle is always the longest. Now that your card is established in their system, future payments should arrive much faster - typically 1-2 business days after PA UC shows 'payment issued'. Make sure to keep filing your weekly claims on time to avoid any interruptions.
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Omar Farouk
•told ya! same thing happened to me. the system is slow but it works eventually
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Ruby Blake
Glad to hear you got your payment! I'm going through the exact same thing right now - switched to the Money Network card 6 days ago and still waiting for my first payment to show up. The UC dashboard says "payment issued" but my card balance is still zero. Reading through all these comments is really reassuring that this delay is normal for the first payment. Hopefully mine shows up in the next few days like yours did!
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GalacticGladiator
•Hang in there! It sounds like you're right on track based on everyone's experiences here. Day 6 is still within that normal 7-10 business day window for first payments. I was getting really anxious around day 7-8 too, but then boom - everything showed up at once. Keep checking your card balance daily and it should appear soon. The waiting is definitely the worst part!
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Malik Thomas
•@Ruby Blake - You re'definitely in the normal timeframe! I just went through this same anxiety a few weeks ago. My first Money Network payment took exactly 8 business days to show up after switching from direct deposit. The UC portal showed payment "issued for" almost a week before anything appeared on my card. Once that first payment hit though, my subsequent weekly payments have been showing up within 2 days like clockwork. Try not to stress too much - the system is just really slow for that initial setup but it does work eventually!
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Mohammed Khan
I'm in a similar boat right now - switched to the Money Network card about 5 days ago after having issues with my bank flagging the UC deposits as suspicious. My dashboard shows "payment issued" since last Wednesday but still showing $0 on the card balance. Reading everyone's experiences here is actually making me feel a lot better! Sounds like 7-10 business days is totally normal for that first payment. I was starting to worry something went wrong with the switch. Thanks for posting this question - clearly a lot of us go through this same stress when switching to the card!
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