Do you get taxed for unemployment benefits in Washington ESD?

So it's optional? I can choose to have them take it out or not?

Exactly. When you're setting up your claim or filing weekly, there's a checkbox for tax withholding. Most people recommend having it withheld so you don't owe a big chunk later.

Ouch! That's exactly what I'm trying to avoid. Thanks for the heads up.

Same thing happened to my brother. He was on unemployment for 6 months and got slammed at tax time.

Never heard of that service before. Does it actually work for getting through to Washington ESD?

Yeah, saved me hours of redialing. The agent was able to change my withholding election right away once I got connected.

Interesting, might have to try that if I can't get through the regular way.

I was making about $65k before I got laid off. Think 10% will be enough?

Probably close, but you might owe a little. Better safe than sorry - maybe set aside an extra 5% yourself just in case.

Correct! Washington has no state income tax, so you only worry about federal taxes on your UI benefits.

Ok good, that's one less thing to stress about!

Good to know, I'll watch for that. Do they mail it or is it electronic?

both i think, you can access it through your esd account online too

That seems to be the consensus. Better to have it taken out upfront.

yep, wish someone had told me that my first time around

That's flexible. So I could start without withholding and add it later if I change my mind?

Yes, but like others said, probably better to start with withholding from the beginning.

I mean, unemployment benefits are income replacement, so it makes sense they're taxed like regular income.

Still feels wrong to me but whatever, gotta play by their rules I guess.

Yes, if your weekly benefit is $400 and you elect 10% withholding, you'd receive $360 per week. The $40 goes to federal taxes.

Got it, thanks. So the withholding comes out of what I receive, not on top of it.

Yeah, it should be more obvious. This is the kind of thing people need to know upfront.

Good advice. I'll start a spreadsheet to track everything.

That's smart. I just screenshot my weekly claim confirmations and keep them in a folder on my phone.

I might do some freelance work. How does that affect my benefits?

You report the gross earnings when you file your weekly claim. They'll reduce your benefit based on how much you earned, and you still owe taxes on both the unemployment and the freelance income.

Yikes! Yeah, I'm definitely going to have them withhold taxes. Thanks everyone for the advice.

Multiple people have mentioned Claimyr now. Might be worth knowing about if I need to make changes later.

Yeah, I used it too when I had adjudication issues. Much better than the busy signal game.

Perfect summary! Thanks everyone. I feel much more confident about this now.

This thread was really helpful. I was wondering about the same thing.