TWC decision timeline - does it really take a full 4 weeks?

it totally depends on your situation. mine took 6 weeks last year because my former boss contested it. but my sister got approved in like 10 days when her company did layoffs. if your employer doesn't contest it should be faster but TWC is always backed up so who knows

The official timeline from TWC is 21 days (3 weeks) for most determinations, but that's a target, not a guarantee. Here's what affects your timeline: 1. Whether your employer responds quickly to TWC's inquiry 2. If there are any issues with your work separation (misconduct, voluntary quit, etc.) 3. Current TWC workload (it fluctuates throughout the year) 4. Whether your identity verification completed successfully If your employer truly isn't contesting and it was a straightforward layoff, you might hear back sooner than 3 weeks. Make sure your ID.me verification is complete - that's often what holds things up initially.

I went through this last month. The official timeline is 21 days but my claim was approved in 14 days. The key is making your first payment request on time even if your claim is still pending! If your claim gets approved, they'll back-pay you for those weeks. Don't wait for approval to start requesting payments. Also, if you're really worried about rent, you can try to reach a TWC agent directly to check your status. I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in about 15 minutes instead of spending days trying to get through. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/V-IMvH88P88P1U?si=kNxmh025COIlIzKh. The agent was able to tell me exactly where my claim was in the process which gave me peace of mind.

ya definitely keep doing ur payment requests even while waiting!!!! i didnt know this and missed out on 2 weeks of payments cuz i thought i had to wait for approval first BIG MISTAKE

The 21-day timeframe is COMPLETE BS in my experience. They say that to keep people from complaining but I've NEVER seen anyone get a determination that fast. My first claim took 5 weeks, then when I had to refile after working a temp job it took SEVEN WEEKS and required THREE calls to finally get someone to manually review it. The system is completely broken and they're overwhelmed with claims. My advice? Start calling as soon as you hit the 3-week mark. Don't wait for them to get to you because your claim can get stuck in the system with no notification. And yes, keep doing payment requests every two weeks no matter what!

UPDATE: I just checked my account this morning (day 11) and my claim was approved! So it looks like if your case is straightforward it can definitely be faster than 3-4 weeks. Thanks everyone for the advice - especially about doing payment requests even while waiting for approval. That was really helpful!

Congrats on getting approved so quickly! That's awesome news. Just wanted to add for anyone else reading this - if you're still waiting on your determination, you can also check if your local workforce center has any emergency assistance programs while you wait. Some areas have rental assistance or food banks specifically for people waiting on unemployment benefits. Also, make sure you're familiar with the work search requirements from day one - you need to complete at least 3 work search activities per week and keep detailed records. The TWC website has a list of what counts as valid work search activities. Good luck with your job search!

Just wanted to share my recent experience since I see this is still an active thread! I filed my claim 3 weeks ago and just got approved yesterday. What really helped speed things up was being proactive about documentation - I uploaded my layoff letter, final paystub, and separation notice right when I filed instead of waiting for them to request it. One thing I learned the hard way: even though my claim got approved, my first payment was delayed because I hadn't completed the required work search activities for the first week. Make sure you're doing those 3 work search activities every single week from day one, even while waiting for approval. The TWC website has good examples of what counts - job applications, networking events, career fairs, etc. Also for anyone still waiting, don't stress too much about the "pending" status. Mine showed pending right up until the day it switched to approved. The system doesn't give you much visibility into where things stand unfortunately. Keep doing those biweekly payment requests and stay on top of the work search requirements!