Can I get Washington ESD unemployment if I owe overpayment from previous claim?

Yes, you can still file and receive benefits even with an outstanding overpayment. Washington ESD will typically offset your weekly benefit amount to recover the overpayment debt. So if you're eligible for $500/week, they might only pay you $400 and apply $100 toward your debt.

I had the same issue last year. They approved my new claim but took out $150 from each $600 payment to cover my old overpayment. It took forever to get through to someone at Washington ESD to confirm this though - kept getting disconnected.

The overpayment won't prevent you from filing a new valid claim. However, make sure you understand WHY you had the overpayment in the first place so you don't repeat the same mistake. Common causes include not reporting work income or working while claiming benefits incorrectly.

wait so they can just take money out of your benefits automatically?? that seems messed up, what if you need that full amount to survive

I'm dealing with this exact situation right now. Filed my new claim two weeks ago and it's been approved, but they're taking $200 out of each $650 payment for my old overpayment debt. Better than nothing I guess.

Just want to add - if you're on a payment plan for the overpayment already, they might reduce the benefit offset. I was paying $100/month voluntarily and they only took $75 from my weekly benefits instead of the full offset amount.

For anyone struggling to reach Washington ESD about overpayment questions, I had great success with Claimyr. Got through to an agent in under 10 minutes who explained exactly how the offset would work with my new claim. Way better than the 3+ hour hold times I was experiencing.

One thing to watch out for - make sure you keep making your regular payments on any payment plan you have set up, even after they start doing the benefit offset. The offset doesn't pause your payment plan obligations.

this whole overpayment thing is such a nightmare. how are people supposed to know all these complicated rules about reporting income? the system sets people up to fail

Update: I called Washington ESD using that Claimyr service someone mentioned and got through immediately. The agent confirmed I can file my new claim and they'll offset about 30% of my weekly benefits toward the overpayment. Much clearer now!

For what it's worth, having the overpayment didn't affect my job search requirements or any other part of my claim. It's really just about the money - everything else processes normally.

Final advice: keep detailed records of all your work and income reporting this time around. Take screenshots of your weekly claim submissions and save confirmation emails. It'll help if any questions come up later.

So the bottom line is: yes you can get benefits with an outstanding overpayment, they'll just take part of each payment to pay it back. Thanks everyone for the info!