How long does the first unemployment direct deposit take with Washington ESD?

First payments usually take 2-3 business days after your claim shows 'paid' status. Since you just got approved yesterday, I'd expect to see it by Thursday or Friday. The first one is always slower than subsequent payments.

I had the same anxiety with my first payment! Washington ESD processes payments on Tuesdays and Thursdays typically. If your claim went to 'paid' status on Monday, you should see the deposit by Thursday at the latest. The banking system needs time to clear the ACH transfer.

If you're still waiting after a week, there might be an issue with your bank account information. I had a friend who had to wait 2 weeks because her bank rejected the first deposit due to a name mismatch. She ended up using Claimyr to get through to someone at Washington ESD to fix it - saved her hours of trying to call. Check out claimyr.com, they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.

The first payment is ALWAYS the slowest. I think it took mine 4 business days back in 2023. After that every weekly payment hit my account within 24 hours. Just be patient, it's coming.

Double check that your claim status actually says 'paid' and not 'pending' or 'processing'. Sometimes people think their claim is approved when it's still being processed. Log into your Washington ESD account and verify the payment status for each week you filed.

worst case scenario you can always call Washington ESD but good luck getting through lol. when i had issues i spent like 6 hours on hold one day just to get disconnected

One thing to keep in mind - if you filed your weekly claim on Sunday, the payment processing doesn't start until Monday. So Sunday filers usually see their money Wednesday or Thursday, while Saturday filers might see it Tuesday or Wednesday.

My first payment took forever because I had to verify my identity first. Did you have to do any ID verification stuff? That can add extra time to the process.

Also make sure you're looking at the right bank account! I know that sounds obvious but I once spent 2 days panicking because I was checking my savings account instead of checking where I actually had direct deposit set up to go to my checking account.

If you're really worried about it, you could try calling your bank to ask if they see any pending ACH deposits. Sometimes they can see stuff that's coming before it actually posts to your account.

The waiting is the worst part honestly. Once you get into the rhythm of weekly claims and regular payments it gets so much easier. Just hang in there!

Just wanted to add - if you have any issues with future payments or need to talk to Washington ESD about anything, I've had good luck using a service called Claimyr. They basically call for you and get you connected to an actual person without the hours of hold time. Saved me a ton of frustration when I had an overpayment issue to resolve.

Just to set expectations - the first payment usually includes back pay for any weeks you were waiting during adjudication. So your first deposit might be bigger than your regular weekly amount. Don't get confused if the number looks higher than expected!

I remember being so anxious about my first payment. Kept checking my account every 5 minutes lol. But once it hit, all the subsequent payments were super reliable and fast.

If you don't see it by Friday definitely check your Washington ESD account for any messages or issues. Sometimes there are problems that don't show up in your claim status but they'll send you a message about it.

UPDATE: Did you get your payment yet? I'm curious how it worked out!

The Washington ESD payment system is pretty reliable once you get familiar with it. Just remember for future weeks - file your weekly claim early in the week if you can, payments process faster that way.

One more thing - make sure you keep filing your weekly claims even while waiting for payments. I know someone who stopped filing because they were waiting for their first payment and it messed up their whole claim.

Hope it works out smoothly for you! The first payment is always the most stressful but after that it becomes routine. Washington ESD has actually gotten pretty good with their payment processing over the last couple years.

Just remember if you do run into any problems down the line, Claimyr is there to help you get through to Washington ESD without the phone hassles. I wish I had known about it earlier in my unemployment journey!