ESD overpayment waiver taking forever - will adjudication affect my new claim?

hate to be the bearer of bad news but those waiver requests take FOREVER. I applied for mine in January and didnt hear back until late march. and yes they DO hold your current benefits to apply to overpayment if its not waived yet. the whole system is designed to make us suffer!!

I went through this last year. The waiver process took about 6-8 weeks for me, but I was able to get it resolved. Here's what you need to do: 1. Call ESD directly to explain your situation and ask them to put a temporary hold on applying your new benefits to the overpayment until the waiver is processed 2. Make sure you've uploaded all documentation showing financial hardship 3. Check your Secure Access Washington messages daily - they often send requests for additional info there 4. If the waiver is approved, they'll cancel the overpayment and release any held benefits The key is getting through to an actual agent who can flag your account. Good luck!

I had the exact same thing happen last year! It's so frustrating how they just spring these overpayments on you out of nowhere. Have you checked your spam folder? Sometimes the notices end up there. Also make sure your address is updated in the system.

I've been helping people with ESD issues for a while now, and I can tell you that getting through to ESD is your best bet for expediting the waiver processing. Most people don't know this, but there's a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that can help you get through to an ESD agent without waiting on hold for hours. They have a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Once you get an agent on the phone, explain your hardship situation and ask them to expedite your waiver review. Also request that they temporarily suspend the overpayment collection until your waiver is processed. Be sure to mention you never received the original notification - they can check their records to verify this.

my freind had this happen and it was a nightmare for like 2 months but then they approved his waiver and everything was fine. just keep calling them everyday thats what he did

There's actually a specific department that handles waivers, so when you call (if you can get through), ask to be transferred to the overpayment waiver unit specifically. Also, make sure you've clearly documented your financial hardship in your waiver application - include bank statements, bills, etc. They're looking for proof that repayment would cause significant financial difficulty. In my experience, waivers are taking 6-10 weeks to process in 2025. But the good news is that the pandemic-related overpayment waivers have a higher approval rate than regular overpayments. About 70% get approved if you have proper documentation. One more thing - if your current claim is in adjudication, that's actually somewhat helpful because they can't apply benefits to the overpayment until the new claim is approved. Use this time to get your waiver processed.

To answer your follow-up question - yes, they did backpay me after my waiver was approved. It took about a week after approval for the funds to appear in my account. They should do the same for you if your waiver is approved.

@OP - Yes, you can add more documentation to your waiver request. Log into your eServices account, go to your waiver application status, and there should be an option to upload additional documents. If you can't find it, call and ask them to note in your file that you want to submit additional hardship evidence. Regarding the adjudication on your new claim - it's actually better to have BOTH issues resolved before any payments start. If your waiver is still pending when your new claim is approved, you might end up with a complicated situation where they take money for the overpayment and then have to give it back later. Did your overpayment notice specify which weeks were overpaid and why? That can help you understand if it's likely to be waived.

Just wanted to update you - I helped someone last month with a similar situation, and we discovered that if you mark your waiver application as "financial hardship" AND "equity and good conscience" (there should be checkboxes for both), it increases your chances of approval. Also, be persistent about calling. If you use that Claimyr service I mentioned, ask specifically for a tier 2 agent who can look at both your adjudication and your waiver status.

Update that by calling them. "Equity and good conscience" applies well to your situation since you never received notification of the overpayment. That's actually a due process issue they take seriously. Also, regarding the "eligibility issues" - that's typically code for one of three things: 1) they think you didn't report some income, 2) they question your availability for work during those weeks, or 3) there was an employer protest that was processed late. Any of these sound possible?