PA UC claim stuck with examiner for 6 weeks after reopening - normal wait time?
I reopened my PA unemployment claim about 6 weeks ago after a short stint at a seasonal job that ended. My claim is showing it's been escalated and is currently with an examiner, but there's been zero movement for almost a month and a half now. No communication, no updates online, nothing. I've tried calling but can't get through (of course). My rent is coming up and I'm seriously stressing. Is this normal for reopened claims in 2025? How much longer should I expect to wait before payments start coming through? Has anyone dealt with a similar timeframe for reopened claims being stuck with an examiner?
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Carmen Reyes
mine took 8 weeks after reopening last month. pa uc is super backed up right now bc of all the tech layoffs
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StarSurfer
•8 weeks?? Ugh. I'm trying not to panic but my savings are almost gone. Did you do anything special to finally get it approved or just wait it out?
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Andre Moreau
When a claim is "with an examiner," it typically means there's an issue they're investigating that requires human review. The standard processing time is 2-3 weeks, but since January 2025, many claims are taking 6-10 weeks due to the backlog. I recommend checking if you have any "open issues" listed on your dashboard. If you see specific issues, you can upload documentation to help resolve them faster. Also, make sure you're still filing your weekly certifications even though you're not getting paid yet - you'll get backpay for all eligible weeks once approved.
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StarSurfer
•Yes, I've been filing every week religiously! There's nothing specific listed under issues - just says "pending examiner review" which is the frustrating part. I have no idea what they're reviewing or if they need something from me.
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Zoe Christodoulou
Has your claim been "escalated" or is it just "with an examiner"? Those are actually two different things! If it's truly escalated, that means someone already reviewed it once and sent it up the chain. If it's just with an examiner, that's the normal first review. BIG difference in wait times!!!
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Andre Moreau
•Good point about the terminology. "With an examiner" just means it's in the standard review queue. "Escalated" means it's been flagged for priority handling, often after long delays or multiple issues. The PA UC system sometimes uses these terms interchangeably in the dashboard, which causes confusion.
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Jamal Thompson
THEY'RE DOING THIS ON PURPOSE!!!! I waited ELEVEN WEEKS for my reopened claim earlier this year. The system is DESIGNED to make people give up. They know most people can't wait that long without income so they just drop their claims. It's how PA saves money 🤬
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Mei Chen
•i dont think its a conspiracy lol. they just dont have enough staff. my cousin works for pa uc and says each examiner has like 300+ cases
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CosmicCadet
I was in the same situation back in February - reopened claim stuck with examiner for weeks. What finally worked for me was using Claimyr to get through to an actual person (claimyr.com). It costs a bit but was worth it because I found out they were missing one specific document from my employer that was holding everything up. Once I knew what the problem was, I got it resolved in a few days. Check out how it works here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 Sometimes just getting through to someone can make all the difference in finding out what's really holding up your claim.
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Liam O'Connor
•Thanks for sharing this! never heard of it before but looks useful. spent 4 hours on hold yesterday and then got disconnected 😩
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Andre Moreau
One other important thing to check - make sure your work search activities are properly recorded each week. Since 2023, PA UC has been much stricter about verifying these, and missing or incomplete work search records can silently hold up your claim. You need at least 5 verifiable activities per week, and they should be entered in detail on the portal. Also, if your claim is crossing a benefit year end date, that can add additional review time as they have to recalculate your benefit amount based on any work during the previous benefit year.
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StarSurfer
•I've definitely been doing all my work search activities and documenting them carefully. My benefit year shouldn't be ending until October, so that's not the issue either. I think I'm going to try to get through to a live person somehow - waiting in limbo with no explanation is the worst part.
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Mei Chen
same thing happend to me but turns out i had identity verification issue! did u check ur dashboard for messages about IDme? sometimes they dont email u about it
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StarSurfer
•Just double-checked and I don't see anything about IDme. I did that verification when I first applied last year. Should I try to redo it anyway?
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Andre Moreau
•It's generally not recommended to redo IDme unless specifically prompted. However, with reopened claims, sometimes their system flags for re-verification after a certain period of inactivity. If you can get through to a representative, they can tell you immediately if this is the issue.
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Liam O'Connor
my buddys claim took 7 weeks last month. just keep filing ur weekly claims and ull get all the backpay. pa system is garbage right now
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Carmen Reyes
•truth. and when u finally get paid they dont even tell u. just suddenly money shows up in ur account lol
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CosmicCadet
Update from someone who just went through this: I found out that as of April 2025, PA UC is prioritizing claims in this order: 1. First-time claims with no issues (2-3 weeks) 2. First-time claims with simple issues (4-6 weeks) 3. Reopened claims without issues (5-7 weeks) 4. Reopened claims with issues (7-10 weeks) 5. Claims with multiple issues or appeals (10+ weeks) So unfortunately, your timeline of 6 weeks for a reopened claim is actually within their current "normal" processing window. It's completely unfair, but at least you have an idea of what to expect now.
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StarSurfer
•Thank you for this breakdown. Helpful but depressing. I guess I'm still within the "normal" window, though it doesn't feel normal when bills are due. I'm going to try to get through to someone this week to see if there's anything specific holding things up.
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