How long to receive first unemployment payment from Washington ESD?

Usually takes 2-3 weeks for first payment if everything goes smoothly. Since you filed 2 weeks ago you should see something soon, assuming no adjudication issues.

Did you set up direct deposit or are you waiting for a debit card? Direct deposit is usually faster - about 1-2 business days after Washington ESD processes your weekly claim. The debit card can take longer to arrive in the mail.

I had the same issue last month - claim looked fine but no payment for 3 weeks. Turns out there was some verification thing they needed that wasn't showing up in my account. I tried calling Washington ESD for days but could never get through. Finally found this service called Claimyr at claimyr.com that helped me get connected to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works. Got my issue resolved the same day I used it.

Check if you completed your ID verification. Washington ESD requires identity verification for new claims and this can hold up your first payment even if your claim shows active. Look for any messages or alerts in your account that might mention ID.me or similar verification steps.

THE WAITING IS THE WORST PART!! I swear Washington ESD does this on purpose to make people give up. My first payment took almost a month because of some random adjudication issue they never properly explained.

Make sure you're filing your weekly claims exactly right. If you miss any questions or put the wrong info it can delay everything. Also double check that your bank account info is correct for direct deposit.

took me 3 weeks to get first payment but after that they came regularly every week. just gotta be patient with the initial processing

Another thing to check - make sure you don't have any outstanding overpayments from previous claims. Washington ESD will hold new payments if you owe money from before, even if it's just a few dollars.

If you don't hear anything by the end of this week I'd definitely try to contact them. The phone system is terrible but sometimes you can get through early in the morning around 7:30am when they first open.

Based on your timeline, you filed 2 weeks ago and have been doing weekly claims. If there are no issues in your account, you should see your first payment this week or next. Washington ESD typically processes payments Tuesday-Thursday, so check your account Wednesday/Thursday.

Don't panic yet! Two weeks is still within normal range. I know it feels like forever when you need the money but Washington ESD is usually pretty good about getting payments out once everything is verified.

You might want to double-check that you completed all the required steps. Sometimes there are things like work search requirements or additional forms that need to be submitted before first payment.

Same boat here - filed 10 days ago and nothing yet. At least I know I'm not the only one waiting!

If you're really concerned, you could try using that Claimyr thing someone mentioned. I used it last year when I had an adjudication issue and it actually worked. Got through to an agent who explained exactly what was holding up my claim.

Keep filing those weekly claims no matter what! Even if you don't get paid right away, you need to maintain that filing schedule or you'll lose benefits for those weeks.