When do I get unemployment benefits after filing my Washington ESD claim?

Generally takes about 2-3 weeks after you file your initial claim to receive your first payment, assuming everything goes smoothly. You'll need to file your weekly claims every week starting the week after you file your initial claim. Did you get any paperwork or notices about your claim status?

depends on if your claim goes into adjudication or not. mine took 5 weeks because they had to verify my employment history. if there's any issues with your claim it can take much longer

I've been through this process recently and honestly, trying to get information from Washington ESD by phone is nearly impossible. I spent hours on hold and kept getting disconnected. What really helped me was using Claimyr (claimyr.com) - they have this system that calls Washington ESD for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. It was a lifesaver when I needed to check on my claim status.

The timing depends on several factors. If you were laid off (not fired for cause), have sufficient work history, and filed your claim correctly, you should see your first payment 2-3 weeks after filing. However, restaurant workers sometimes face delays if Washington ESD needs to verify tip income or seasonal employment patterns. Make sure you're filing your weekly claims every Sunday.

This whole system is so frustrating!!! I filed 3 weeks ago and STILL haven't gotten a single payment. Every time I try to call Washington ESD I get a busy signal or they hang up on me after being on hold for 2 hours. How are people supposed to survive like this??

just file your weekly claims and wait. everyone's always so impatient these days. it takes time to process claims properly

One important thing to remember is that your first payment will be for the week AFTER you file your initial claim, not the week you file. So if you filed last Thursday, your first payable week would be this past Sunday through Saturday. You'll need to file your weekly claim for that week, and if approved, you'd get paid for it in the following week.

omg same situation! filed last week and dying to know when money comes in. bills don't stop just because you're unemployed

If you want to check your claim status more specifically, log into your Washington ESD account and look under 'Weekly Claims' and 'Payment Information'. It should show you if any weeks are pending, paid, or if there are issues. The key is making sure you file every single weekly claim on time, even if you haven't been paid yet.

also make sure you're doing your job searches. washington requires 3 job search activities per week and if you don't log them properly it can delay your payments

The whole unemployment system needs an overhaul. Two weeks to get your first payment when people are desperate is ridiculous. Other states do it faster.

Thanks everyone for all the information. Sounds like I just need to be patient and keep filing my weekly claims. I'll make sure to start doing job searches too since I didn't realize that was required.

I got my first payment exactly 14 days after filing. but i had a straightforward case with no complications. restaurant work shouldn't cause any issues as long as your employer reported everything correctly

make sure you set up direct deposit if you haven't already. getting a debit card in the mail takes longer than direct deposit

One more tip - if you don't receive your payment within 4 weeks of filing, that's when you should definitely try to contact Washington ESD to see what's going on. Before that, it's usually just normal processing time.

been there! the waiting is awful but most people do get their benefits eventually. just stay on top of your weekly claims

Update on my situation - I finally got through to someone at Washington ESD using that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier. Turns out my claim was stuck because they needed additional verification from my previous employer. Agent was able to expedite the process and I should get my benefits next week. Would have saved me weeks of stress if I'd known about this service earlier!

restaurant workers unite! lol but seriously, make sure you report any cash tips you got that weren't on your paystubs. they can verify that stuff and it could delay your claim

The key is just being patient and following the process. File your weekly claims every week, do your job searches, and respond to any requests for information quickly. Most claims get approved without major issues.