How long after you file for unemployment do you get paid in Washington?
I just submitted my unemployment application through the Washington ESD website last Tuesday and I'm wondering how long it typically takes to receive your first payment. I've been out of work for almost 3 weeks now and bills are starting to pile up. My claim status shows 'under review' but there's no timeline given. Has anyone recently gone through this process? How long should I expect to wait before seeing any money?
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Maya Jackson
It usually takes about 2-3 weeks after you file your initial claim, but that's assuming everything goes smoothly and you don't get stuck in adjudication.
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Nathan Dell
•What does adjudication mean exactly? My status just says 'under review' right now.
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Maya Jackson
•Adjudication is when they need to investigate something about your claim - like if there's a question about why you left your job or if you're eligible. It can add weeks or even months to the process.
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Tristan Carpenter
The waiting period is typically one week, then if your claim is approved you should get paid for the second week. But you have to file your weekly claims every week even while waiting for approval.
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Nathan Dell
•I didn't know I had to file weekly claims before approval! I haven't done that yet. Am I going to lose those weeks?
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Tristan Carpenter
•You might be able to backdate them, but definitely start filing your weekly claims immediately. Don't wait for approval or you could lose benefits.
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Amaya Watson
I filed in January and still waiting... been calling Washington ESD for weeks trying to get through but the phone system is impossible. Anyone found a way to actually talk to someone there?
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Grant Vikers
•I had the same problem until someone told me about Claimyr. It's a service that helps you get through to Washington ESD agents. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows exactly how it works.
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Amaya Watson
•Is that legit? I'm desperate enough to try anything at this point.
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Grant Vikers
•Yeah it's real. They basically call Washington ESD for you and get you connected to an actual person. Way better than spending hours hitting redial.
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Giovanni Martello
depends on if they need to verify your wages or not. mine took 6 weeks because my employer reported my wages wrong to Washington ESD
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Nathan Dell
•How did you find out your wages were reported wrong?
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Giovanni Martello
•they sent me a letter asking for pay stubs to verify. had to submit like 3 months worth of documentation
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Savannah Weiner
The Washington ESD website says 2-3 weeks for processing but that's before COVID messed everything up. Now it seems like 4-6 weeks is more realistic, especially if you worked for multiple employers or had any gaps in employment.
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Levi Parker
•COVID stuff is mostly cleared up now though. I filed in December and got paid in 3 weeks exactly.
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Savannah Weiner
•That's good to hear! Maybe they've finally caught up with the backlog.
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Maya Jackson
Make sure you're doing your job search activities from day one too. Washington ESD requires 3 job search contacts per week and if you don't have them documented, it can delay your payments.
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Nathan Dell
•I thought the job search requirement was waived during the waiting period?
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Maya Jackson
•Nope, you need to be actively looking for work from the day you file. Keep track of everything in WorkSourceWA or your own log.
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Libby Hassan
•Actually I think there might be a grace period for the first week but don't quote me on that. Better safe than sorry.
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Amaya Watson
UPDATE: I tried that Claimyr thing and it actually worked! Got connected to a Washington ESD agent in like 20 minutes instead of calling for hours. Turns out my claim was stuck because of some identity verification issue I didn't even know about.
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Nathan Dell
•That's amazing! How much did it cost?
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Amaya Watson
•Worth every penny to finally get answers. My claim should be resolved within a few days now.
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Tristan Carpenter
Just to clarify the timeline: Week 1 is your waiting week (no payment), Week 2 you can get paid if approved, but the actual processing of your application can take 2-6 weeks depending on complexity. So you might not see money until week 4-8 realistically.
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Nathan Dell
•So if I filed last Tuesday, I'm looking at maybe getting paid sometime in March?
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Tristan Carpenter
•Possibly, yes. Make sure you're filing your weekly claims every week though, or you'll lose those weeks forever.
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Giovanni Martello
also watch out for the debit card thing. even after your claim is approved it takes another few days to get the Bank of America debit card in the mail
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Nathan Dell
•Can you get direct deposit instead?
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Giovanni Martello
•i think so but the debit card is the default. check your payment options in your account
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Savannah Weiner
The key thing is to stay on top of your weekly claims and respond immediately to any requests from Washington ESD. Every day you delay responding to their requests can add weeks to your processing time.
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Maya Jackson
•This is so important. I've seen people lose months because they didn't respond to a simple verification request.
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Nathan Dell
•Good to know. I'll make sure to check my account daily for any messages.
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Levi Parker
honestly the whole system is a mess. took me 7 weeks to get my first payment and that was without any complications. just be patient and keep filing your weeklies
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Nathan Dell
•7 weeks?? How did you survive that long without income?
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Levi Parker
•credit cards and borrowing from family. it sucked but eventually the money came through including backpay
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Libby Hassan
If your claim gets denied initially don't panic. You can appeal and often win on appeal. I got denied first time because of some paperwork issue but won my appeal after 2 months.
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Nathan Dell
•How do you know if you should appeal vs just accept the denial?
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Libby Hassan
•If you genuinely qualify for benefits, always appeal. The worst that happens is they uphold the denial but you might win.
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Tristan Carpenter
•Appeals can take several months though, so make sure you have other income sources lined up.
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Grant Vikers
For anyone still having trouble getting through to Washington ESD, I can't recommend Claimyr enough. I used it twice last year when I had issues and both times got connected to helpful agents who resolved my problems quickly.
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Nathan Dell
•I might have to try that if my claim doesn't move forward in the next week or two.
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Grant Vikers
•The peace of mind is worth it. Much better than stressing about whether you'll ever get through on the phone.
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Maya Jackson
Final tip: screenshot everything in your Washington ESD account including confirmation numbers when you file your weekly claims. If there are any system glitches you'll have proof of what you submitted.
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Nathan Dell
•Great advice! I'll start doing that this week.
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Giovanni Martello
•yes this saved me when their system glitched and said I didn't file a weekly claim when I did
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Levi Parker
also heads up that your first payment might be less than expected because they take out taxes if you opted for that. check your settings
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Nathan Dell
•Should I have taxes taken out or just pay at the end of the year?
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Levi Parker
•depends on your situation but i prefer having them taken out so i don't owe a big chunk in april
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Savannah Weiner
One more thing - if you were on standby status with your employer, that changes the timeline and requirements. Standby claims get processed differently than regular unemployment claims.
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Nathan Dell
•What's standby status? I don't think that applies to me but curious.
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Savannah Weiner
•It's when your employer temporarily lays you off but expects to call you back within a certain timeframe. Different rules apply for job search requirements.
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Amaya Watson
Update #2: Got my first payment today! Took exactly 4 weeks from when I first filed. The backpay covered all the weeks I was waiting so that was a relief.
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Nathan Dell
•That's encouraging! Hopefully mine will come through soon too.
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Amaya Watson
•Hang in there, it'll happen. Just make sure you keep filing those weekly claims every single week.
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Tristan Carpenter
To summarize for OP: expect 2-6 weeks for initial processing, file your weekly claims religiously, respond to all Washington ESD requests immediately, and don't panic if it takes longer than expected. The system is slow but it works eventually.
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Nathan Dell
•Thank you everyone for all the helpful information! I feel much more prepared now.
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Maya Jackson
•Good luck! Come back and update us when you get your first payment.
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Libby Hassan
And remember that even if there are delays, you'll get backpay for all the weeks you were eligible, so you won't lose money just because of processing delays.
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Nathan Dell
•That's probably the most reassuring thing I've heard. Thanks!
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Tristan Carpenter
•Exactly right. The waiting is stressful but you'll get everything you're owed once it's approved.
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Grant Vikers
Last suggestion - if you run into any roadblocks or your claim gets stuck, don't waste weeks trying to call Washington ESD directly. Services like Claimyr exist for a reason and can save you a lot of time and stress.
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Nathan Dell
•I'll definitely keep that in mind if I need it. Hopefully everything goes smoothly but good to have a backup plan.
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Amaya Watson
•Trust me, having that option available makes the whole process less anxiety-inducing.
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