TWC waiting week claim timing when benefits are almost exhausted - need advice ASAP
Hi everyone, I'm about to exhaust my TWC benefits this week and I'm stressing out about the waiting week claim process. I just called in my payment request today and noticed I only have about $410 left in my account (usually get around $1,125 every two weeks). My question is about the timing for claiming my waiting week - should I wait until after I receive this final smaller payment? Or should I go ahead and request the waiting week now? I don't want to mess anything up since this is literally my last payment. Anyone been through this before who can tell me what the correct procedure is? Thanks!
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Jean Claude
ive been in ur exact spot before. u should go ahead n claim the waiting week NOW dont wait til the last payment comes thru. if u wait u might miss the window to get it at all!!!
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Chris Elmeda
•Really? Thank you! I was worried about claiming it too early. Do you know how long it takes for the waiting week payment to process once I request it?
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Charity Cohan
Actually, according to TWC guidelines, you should wait until you've received your final regular unemployment payment before requesting your waiting week payment. The system needs to register that you've exhausted your regular benefits first. If you request it too early, the system might not recognize that you qualify for the waiting week reimbursement yet. The waiting week is the first week you were eligible for benefits but weren't paid for. You only get this reimbursed after you've either returned to full-time work or exhausted your benefits. Since you're exhausting benefits, wait for your final payment to process, then request the waiting week.
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Jean Claude
•thats not what happened when i did it last year. they told me i had to request it before my benefits were totally gone or i'd lose it completely
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Josef Tearle
I'm in the exact same situation right now!!!! My benefits are almost gone too and I've been trying to call TWC for THREE DAYS about my waiting week and can't get through!!! This is so frustrating!!!! Did anyone actually manage to TALK to a real person about this???
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Shelby Bauman
•I was in the same boat trying to get clarification on my waiting week last month. After getting busy signals for days, I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a TWC agent in about 20 minutes instead of spending hours redialing. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/V-IMvH88P1U?si=kNxmh025COIlIzKh The agent confirmed that you need to wait until your final payment processes, and then request the waiting week. You have 30 days after benefits exhaustion to request it. Hope this helps!
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Quinn Herbert
Congrats on making it to the end of your claim! Hopefully that means you found work? When I exhausted my benefits last fall and requested my waiting week, it took about 10 days to receive it. Just another data point.
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Chris Elmeda
•Thanks! Unfortunately no job yet, but I have a couple promising interviews next week. Good to know about the 10-day timeframe - that helps with my budget planning.
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Salim Nasir
There's a lot of confusion about waiting weeks because TWC changed some of their policies recently. Here's the current, correct procedure: 1. You must have either exhausted your benefits OR returned to full-time work 2. You must wait until your final payment has been PROCESSED (not just requested) 3. Once that final payment shows as paid in your account, then request the waiting week 4. You have 30 days after your benefits exhaustion date to request it 5. The payment will be the same amount as your regular weekly benefit amount If you try to request it before your final payment processes, the system may reject it because it doesn't yet recognize that you've met the exhaustion requirement. I've seen many people confused by this in my TWC support group.
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Josef Tearle
•Do you know if the waiting week payment will be the full weekly amount or the reduced remaining balance amount??? Because if I only have $300 left but my weekly benefit is $500, will I get the full $500 for my waiting week or just $300???
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Salim Nasir
•Great question. The waiting week payment is not deducted from your benefit balance - it's a separate payment of your full weekly benefit amount. So even if your last regular payment was reduced because you exhausted your balance, your waiting week payment should be your full weekly benefit amount.
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Hazel Garcia
When I had my unemployment last year the whole system was so confusing! I thought I filed for my waiting week but then it turned out I had actually just filed a regular payment request and somehow messed up my claim. Took 3 weeks and multiple calls to fix it. The TWC website is so badly designed!
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Charity Cohan
•This is why it's so important to follow the correct sequence. To request a waiting week specifically, you need to call the Tele-Serv system at 800-558-8321 and select option 1, then option 2. The automated system will ask if you want to request your waiting week. Just make sure your final regular payment has processed first.
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Quinn Herbert
Has anyone else noticed how TWC's guidance on this is completely unclear on their website? I had to figure this out through trial and error too.
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Laila Fury
•ABSOLUTELY!! The TWC website is TRASH and their phone system is WORSE!! I spent 4 HOURS on hold last week just to get disconnected when someone finally picked up!!! How can they expect people to follow their stupid rules when they make everything so complicated and then don't answer their phones?!?!?
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Chris Elmeda
Thank you all for the helpful responses! Based on the consensus, I'm going to wait until my final payment processes (probably by Friday) and then request the waiting week. It's a relief to know I have 30 days to request it after exhaustion. I was worried there was some tight deadline I might miss. I'm still job hunting but have two promising interviews next week, so hopefully I won't need to worry about benefits extension or anything like that. This community has been so helpful during this stressful time!
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Salim Nasir
•Good plan, and good luck with your interviews! Just remember to keep doing and documenting your 3 work search activities each week until you secure employment, even after benefits exhaustion. This keeps your claim in good standing in case you need to reapply in the future, and also makes sure you're eligible for that waiting week payment.
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Chris Elmeda
•That's great advice about continuing work search activities - I hadn't thought about that. Thank you!
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