PA UC claim stuck in 'under review' status for 8 weeks - no benefits despite Stage 3

ur not alone, my claim is on wk 10 of 'under review' hell. same thing, stage 3, no explanation, no way to contact anyone. called 50+ times easy. PA UC is the absolute worst system I've ever dealt with. they expect us to file weekly claims but dont bother to actually process them smh

The 'under review' status usually indicates they need to verify something specific about your claim. Common issues include: - Wage verification issues - Previous employer dispute about reason for separation - Identity verification not fully processed - Missing quarterly wages - Potential eligibility issue This doesn't necessarily mean you did anything wrong. The PA UC system is backlogged but 8 weeks is longer than average. I'd recommend: 1. Check your dashboard for any correspondence or action items (sometimes they're hidden in the 'Messages' section) 2. Make sure you completed the ID.me verification if required 3. Verify all work search activities are properly recorded 4. Keep filing your weekly claims while waiting Most importantly, try to speak with an actual agent to find out what's causing the delay.

Have you tried calling right when they open at 8am??? I was in a similar situation (stuck at review for 6 weeks) and the ONLY way I got through was calling at exactly 7:59am and repeatedly hitting redial until I got in the queue. Still waited 45 mins but at least got through. The agent told me there was a wage verification issue that wasn't showing on my dashboard for some reason. They fixed it while I was on the phone and my payments started the next week.

I want to add that these long delays are often related to employer responses. If your employer hasn't responded to the UC office's request for information about your separation, they'll hold your claim until they receive it. The problem is, many employers take their sweet time responding, and the UC office is terrible about following up. You should call your former employer's HR department to see if they've received and responded to any unemployment verification requests.

i had simlar thing happen 2months ago. wat fixed for me was emailng uchelp@pa.gov with my full name claim# and phone# in subject line. then in email i just said my claim stuck in review for X weeks please help. got response in 3 days and payment 2 days aftr that. worth a shot man

I was stuck in the 'under review' loop for almost 7 weeks and was going crazy trying to get through on the phone. I finally tried Claimyr.com and it actually worked! It got me connected to a PA UC agent in about 30 minutes instead of endless busy signals. The agent found an issue with how my employer reported my wages (they had me under the wrong SSN digits) and fixed it while I was on the phone. My status changed from 'under review' to 'processed' within 48 hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2. Seriously worth it when you're desperate to talk to someone.

@username8 - It's completely legit. They don't handle your unemployment claim or anything - they just connect you to the actual PA UC phone lines. I was skeptical too but after weeks of frustration, I was willing to try anything. The UC agent I spoke with was an actual PA government employee.

I've worked with claimants in similar situations, and one thing that's important to understand is that the PA UC system sometimes creates an 'invisible hold' that agents can see but doesn't appear on your dashboard. These are usually triggered by system flags related to previous claims, wage discrepancies, or identity verification delays. Only a UC representative can see and resolve these issues. Keep trying to reach someone by phone, and in the meantime, make absolutely sure you continue filing your weekly claims. Once your issue is resolved, they'll release all eligible weeks at once.

Has anyone else noticed that the system seems WORSE now than during covid? Like they upgraded their systems but somehow made everything take longer? lol typical PA government...

UPDATE: Success!!! I finally got through to someone this morning using the 7:59am trick. Turns out there was an issue with my ID verification - even though I completed ID.me, something didn't transfer properly to their system. The agent manually verified my identity and said my payments should process within 3-5 business days. She also added a note that I should receive all 8 weeks of back payments. Such a relief! Thanks everyone for the suggestions.

awesome man! glad u got it fixed. make sure u keep checking ur dashboard tho, sometimes they say 3-5 days but takes longer. fingers crossed 4 u

That's great news! The same thing happened to my brother - he completed ID.me but it didn't properly connect to his claim. It's such a broken system. Thanks for updating us!

Congrats on finally getting through! This gives me hope. I'm currently on week 6 of being stuck in review and it's driving me insane. I've been trying the phone at different times but haven't been strategic about it. Definitely going to try the 7:59am approach tomorrow. It's ridiculous that ID.me verification issues aren't visible on our dashboards - how are we supposed to know what's wrong if they don't tell us? The whole system is such a mess. Thanks for sharing your update and what actually worked!

This is exactly the kind of nightmare scenario that makes me so angry about how PA handles unemployment claims. 8 weeks is completely unacceptable, especially when you've done everything right on your end. I went through something similar last year - 5 weeks stuck in review with zero explanation. What finally worked for me was a combination of calling at exactly 8am (not 7:59, but right at 8) and also sending that email to uchelp@pa.gov that someone mentioned. The email actually got a response faster than the phone calls. In my case, it turned out to be a wage verification issue that my employer never responded to, but they never told me that was the problem. The system is completely broken and they expect us to just sit there and wait indefinitely while our bills pile up. Keep fighting and don't let them wear you down - you deserve those benefits!

I'm dealing with the exact same frustrating situation right now - going on week 5 of being stuck in "under review" with absolutely no explanation or communication from PA UC. Like you, I've done everything correctly: completed ID.me verification, uploaded all documents, answered questions honestly, and have been faithfully doing my work search activities every week. My separation was straightforward too (company downsizing), nothing complicated that should require this level of review. The complete lack of transparency is what gets me the most - how are we supposed to know what's wrong if they won't tell us? I've tried calling dozens of times but can never get through. Reading through all these responses, it sounds like the 7:59am/8am calling strategy might be my best bet, along with trying that uchelp@pa.gov email. It's absolutely ridiculous that in 2025 we still have to play these games just to access benefits we're entitled to. Thanks for posting this - at least it's reassuring to know I'm not alone in this nightmare!

I'm currently in week 9 of being stuck in "under review" and this thread is giving me some hope! I've tried everything - called hundreds of times, checked my dashboard obsessively, even drove to the local CareerLink office (they couldn't help). My situation is almost identical to yours - straightforward layoff, all documents uploaded, ID.me completed, work search activities done every week. I'm definitely going to try the 7:59am calling strategy and the uchelp@pa.gov email approach that several people mentioned. It's absolutely maddening that we have to become private investigators just to figure out what's wrong with our own claims. The fact that ID verification issues and wage verification problems don't show up on our dashboards is beyond ridiculous. How are we supposed to fix something we can't even see? Thank you for posting this and for the update that you finally got through - it gives me hope that there's light at the end of this tunnel!

I'm in week 4 of the same "under review" nightmare and reading everyone's experiences here is both frustrating and reassuring. Like so many others, I've done everything correctly - completed ID.me, uploaded documents, honest separation (laid off due to budget cuts), weekly work searches done religiously. The complete radio silence from PA UC is maddening! I've called probably 40 times and either get busy signals or mysteriously disconnected. What really gets me is how we're all experiencing the same invisible issues - ID verification problems, wage verification delays, employer response issues - but NONE of this shows up on our dashboards. It's 2025 and they can't even tell us what's wrong with our own claims! I'm definitely going to try the 7:59am calling strategy and the uchelp@pa.gov email that people mentioned. The fact that we have to crowdsource solutions to basic government services is absolutely ridiculous. Thank you to everyone sharing their experiences and strategies - at least we know we're not going crazy and these issues do eventually get resolved!

I'm currently dealing with this exact same issue - week 6 of being stuck in "under review" with zero explanation. Reading through everyone's experiences here is both validating and infuriating. It's clear that PA UC has systematic problems with invisible holds, ID verification glitches, and wage verification delays that don't show up anywhere on our dashboards. The fact that we're all doing detective work just to figure out what's wrong with our own claims is absolutely ridiculous. I've been calling constantly but can't get through - definitely going to try the 7:59am strategy and the uchelp@pa.gov email approach that several people mentioned. It's reassuring to see that most people eventually get their issues resolved and receive back payments, but the stress of not knowing what's happening while bills pile up is unbearable. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and strategies - this community support means everything when the actual system fails us so completely!

I'm currently in week 7 of being stuck in "under review" and this thread has been incredibly helpful! Like everyone else, I've done everything correctly - completed ID.me, uploaded all required documents, straightforward layoff due to company restructuring, and I've been religiously filing my weekly claims and work search activities. The complete lack of communication from PA UC is what drives me crazy the most. I've called probably 60+ times and either get busy signals or get disconnected after waiting. Based on everyone's experiences here, I'm definitely going to try the 7:59am calling strategy tomorrow morning and also send that email to uchelp@pa.gov. It's both reassuring and infuriating to see that so many of us are dealing with these same invisible system issues - ID verification glitches, wage verification delays, employer response problems - that don't show up anywhere on our dashboards. The fact that we have to crowdsource solutions and become unemployment claim detectives just to access benefits we're entitled to is absolutely ridiculous. Thank you to everyone for sharing your strategies and experiences - at least we know we're not alone in this nightmare and that these issues do eventually get resolved!

I'm in week 3 of the exact same "under review" nightmare and reading everyone's experiences here is both terrifying and oddly comforting. Like so many others, I've done everything by the book - completed ID.me verification, uploaded all documents, filed weekly claims religiously, doing my work searches. My separation was completely straightforward (seasonal construction layoff), nothing that should require weeks of mysterious review. The absolute worst part is the complete silence - no explanation, no timeline, no way to even know what's wrong. I've been calling constantly but it's always busy signals or those weird disconnections that make you wonder if they're even trying to help people. Based on all the advice here, I'm definitely going to try the 7:59am calling strategy starting tomorrow and also send that email to uchelp@pa.gov. It's absolutely insane that we have to become unemployment claim detectives just to access benefits we've earned. The fact that so many of us are dealing with identical invisible system issues really shows how broken PA UC is. Thanks to everyone for sharing what actually works - this community support is literally the only helpful resource I've found!

I'm in week 5 of this exact same "under review" nightmare and this thread is like finding an oasis in the desert! Like everyone else here, I've done absolutely everything correctly - completed ID.me, uploaded all documents, straightforward layoff from retail (store closure), been filing weekly claims and doing work searches religiously. The complete blackout of information is what's driving me insane - how can they expect us to just sit here indefinitely with zero explanation while our rent and utilities pile up? I've called probably 80+ times and it's always the same story: busy signals, mysterious disconnections, or that horrible hold music that suddenly cuts to dial tone. Reading everyone's experiences, it's crystal clear that PA UC has massive systemic issues with these invisible holds and verification problems that don't show up anywhere we can see them. I'm absolutely going to try the 7:59am calling strategy starting tomorrow and also send that email to uchelp@pa.gov that several people had success with. The fact that we need to crowdsource basic information about our own government benefits is completely insane, but I'm so grateful for everyone sharing what actually works. This community has been more helpful than the entire PA UC system! I'll definitely update if I make any progress with those methods.