my cousin works for esd (not in claims dept tho) and she says theyre SUPER backed up right now because of system updates they did in march. standby stuff is taking longer than normal. she said maybe even 2 weeks for some people :

UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know that my standby extension was finally approved! It took 7 business days total. For anyone else in this situation - I ended up registering on the out-of-work list as a precaution but kept checking my account daily. The approval showed up without any notification email, so definitely keep checking your account regularly. Thanks for all the advice!

You're absolutely right - that was my typo. The benefit year runs for 12 months from the date of filing, so in this case until August 2026. Thanks for the correction!

You're right, I made another error. The benefit year would run until August 2026, exactly 12 months from the filing date of August 3, 2025. Thank you for the correction.

If you're having trouble reaching ESD to ask questions about job search requirements, I highly recommend using Claimyr. It helped me get through to an actual ESD agent in about 20 minutes after I'd been trying for days on my own. The agent was able to clarify exactly what I needed to include in my job search log and answer all my questions. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 that shows how it works. The website is claimyr.com if you want to check it out. Saved me tons of frustration!

Thanks everyone for the great responses! I really hope the mods see this and consider pinning something. It's clearly a common question that affects a lot of people. In the meantime, maybe we should all make sure to reply to new posts about job search logs and point people to this thread? At least until there's an official FAQ. Just trying to help our community avoid problems with ESD!

Unfortunately you can't technically backfill job search activities, but you can document anything you actually did in those weeks (applications, resume submissions, networking, etc.). When you finally speak with an agent, explain your misunderstanding about the requirements. Sometimes they'll give you a one-time exemption if you can show you were actively looking but just not documenting properly. If you already have a job lined up at your new location with a future start date, you might qualify for "standby" status which would exempt you from job search requirements temporarily. But you'd need to apply for that specifically.

One additional thing to check - log into your eServices account and look for any alerts or questionnaires they might have sent. Sometimes they need additional information but the notification gets filtered to spam. Also, military spouse claims sometimes require an additional Military Spouse Declaration form that's separate from your initial application. If all else fails, you can also try contacting the WorkSource office in your new location - sometimes they have direct channels to ESD staff and can help move things along. Good luck!

I checked back to see if you'd had any progress. Based on your latest comments, you have a strong case for a quick resolution IF your employer moves quickly and you can get through to ESD. Since you're still working reduced hours, this should qualify as a partial unemployment claim. Make sure you're accurately reporting your part-time earnings each week when you file. Have you had any luck getting through to ESD by phone yet?

I used Claimyr last month when I had an adjudication issue and it worked really well. Got connected to an ESD agent in about 20 minutes instead of trying for days. The agent was able to see notes on my account that weren't visible to me online and fixed my issue while I was on the phone. Definitely worth it when you're in a time-critical situation like this.