Do you have to claim doordash on unemployment Washington ESD?

How do they usually find out? I mean, is it through tax records or something else?

Washington ESD cross-references with various databases including wage records, tax filings, and sometimes even social media. It's not worth the risk - always report honestly.

What's the formula exactly? Like if I earn $250 in a week, how much would my benefits get reduced?

I think they subtract your gross earnings from your weekly benefit amount. So if your benefit is $400 and you earn $250, you'd get $150 in UI that week. But double check this on the Washington ESD website.

Actually that's not quite right. There's a disregard amount - I believe it's 25% of your weekly benefit or something like that. The calculation is more complex.

Wait, gross earnings? So if I made $300 but spent $50 on gas, I report the full $300?

Exactly. They want the total amount you earned before any expenses. The expense deductions are for tax purposes, not unemployment reporting.

Oh no, that sounds awful. How did they catch you?

They matched my SSN with 1099 forms that companies file. Got a letter months later demanding repayment. I tried to appeal but couldn't prove I didn't know about the reporting requirement.

Is that legit? I've never heard of using a service to call Washington ESD for you.

Yeah it's real. I was skeptical too but it actually worked. They handle the calling and waiting on hold, then connect you when an agent picks up. Saved me hours of frustration.

Interesting. I might try that because I've been trying to call for weeks about my own reporting questions.

That's helpful, thank you. So it's based on when I worked, not when the money hit my account?

Correct. It's work-week based, not payment-week based. This trips up a lot of people with gig work since payments are often delayed.

I get the frustration, but the idea is that unemployment is temporary support while you look for full-time work. They don't want people choosing gig work over actively seeking regular employment.

I guess that makes sense, but it still feels punitive when you're just trying to survive.

How much is too much? I'm only doing like 10-15 hours a week.

That's probably fine, but make sure you're still doing your required job search activities and logging them properly. Keep your gig work limited so it doesn't interfere with being available for regular job interviews.

Yes, any amount needs to be reported. There's no minimum threshold. Even $10 needs to be reported.

Ugh, okay. Better safe than sorry I guess.

Good idea. I've been pretty sloppy with tracking so far.

Start now! Even if you estimate for previous weeks, having records going forward will save you headaches.

How much does something like that cost? Is it worth it for simple questions?

For me it was worth it because I was losing sleep worrying about whether I was reporting correctly. The peace of mind was valuable. Check out their website for details.

Really? Just signing up counts as work?

Not necessarily signing up, but if you're logged into the app and available to receive orders, some interpret that as being 'at work' even if you don't get any orders. It's a gray area.

I think that's overthinking it. If you didn't earn anything and didn't actually work, there's nothing to report. But definitely report any actual earnings.

Yeah, definitely better to start reporting now than get in trouble later.

Agreed. Going to update my next weekly claim with all my gig earnings.

It really does work. I was skeptical at first but they got me through to someone in like 20 minutes when I had been trying for days on my own.

I'll check it out. These phone wait times are ridiculous.

Thanks everyone for all the advice. I'm definitely going to start reporting my DoorDash earnings properly.

Good decision. You'll sleep better knowing you're following the rules correctly.

You can definitely report it online when you file your weekly claim. There are specific fields for work performed and earnings. Just make sure to use gross earnings, not net.

Perfect, thanks. That's much easier than trying to call.

Agreed. The rise of gig work has created a lot of gray areas in unemployment policy. Hopefully they'll update their guidance soon.

In the meantime, threads like this are really valuable for sharing real experiences.

Great job! You'll feel much better knowing you're compliant with the rules.

Did it reduce your benefit amount much?

Yeah, it reduced it but not as much as I feared. Still got some UI benefits plus kept most of my DoorDash earnings.

I hear you, but sometimes you need the extra income to get by. As long as you report everything properly, it's manageable.

True, everyone's situation is different. Good luck with everything!

What's the threshold? I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere.

I think it's tied to your weekly benefit amount, but I'm not 100% sure of the exact formula. Definitely something to ask Washington ESD about.

Generally if your earnings exceed your weekly benefit amount, you won't receive any UI for that week. But there might be some allowances built in.

I've been doing some research on this and from what I can find on the Washington ESD website, there's actually a partial earnings disregard. It's not a simple dollar-for-dollar reduction. I believe you can earn up to 25% of your weekly benefit amount before any deduction, then they subtract the remaining earnings from your benefit. But the exact calculation is complex and I'd recommend calling to confirm your specific situation.