Where to pay Washington ESD unemployment taxes - confused about payment process

You don't pay Washington ESD directly for the taxes on your unemployment benefits. The unemployment compensation is taxable income that gets reported on your federal tax return (and state tax return if you live in a state with income tax). You'll use the 1099-G form when filing your taxes.

wait, we have to pay taxes on unemployment?? I thought that was like welfare or something that didn't count as income

I had the same confusion last year! What really helped me was using Claimyr to get through to an Washington ESD agent who could explain exactly what the 1099-G meant. The site is claimyr.com and they have a helpful video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ. Way easier than trying to call Washington ESD directly.

Just to clarify the process: Your 1099-G shows the total unemployment compensation you received. You report this amount on Line 7 of your Form 1040. If you chose to have federal taxes withheld from your weekly claims, that withholding amount will also be on the 1099-G and gets applied to your total tax liability.

Pro tip: if you're doing your own taxes, make sure you enter the unemployment income correctly. I made a mistake last year and had to file an amended return. TurboTax and other software should walk you through it though.

This whole tax thing on unemployment is such BS. We're already struggling financially and then they want more money from us. The system is rigged against working people.

Another question - what if I never received my 1099-G? I've been waiting for it but nothing came in the mail.

just went through this whole mess myself. took forever to get someone at Washington ESD on the phone to explain my 1099-G had errors on it. ended up using that claimyr thing someone mentioned and actually got connected in like 10 minutes instead of waiting hours

so basically we pay the taxes through our regular tax return filing, not directly to Washington ESD?

I worked with a tax preparer last year and they handled all the unemployment tax stuff for me. Might be worth the cost if you're really confused about it. They know exactly how to handle the 1099-G.

One thing to watch out for - if you received unemployment in multiple states, you'll get separate 1099-G forms from each state. Make sure you report all of them.

For anyone still confused about the process: 1) Get your 1099-G from Washington ESD (online or by mail), 2) Report the unemployment income on your tax return, 3) Pay any additional taxes owed or receive a refund through the normal tax process. That's it - no separate payments to Washington ESD for the taxes.

dont forget that if you got the extra federal unemployment payments during covid those are taxable too, not just the regular state benefits

I'm dealing with the same thing right now. The 1099-G process seems straightforward enough, but I'm more concerned about whether I'll owe a lot in taxes since I didn't have much withheld during the year.

PSA: if you're doing your taxes yourself, double-check that you're using the right box from the 1099-G. Box 1 is the total benefits, Box 4 is federal taxes withheld. Don't mix them up.

Update on my earlier comment about getting help from Washington ESD - I actually used Claimyr again recently for a different issue and they're still super helpful for getting through to agents quickly. Definitely recommend checking out their site if you need to talk to someone at Washington ESD about your 1099-G or any other unemployment questions.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful info! Sounds like I was making this way more complicated than it needed to be. Just need to wait for my 1099-G and include it with my regular tax filing. Really appreciate all the detailed explanations.

One last tip - keep a copy of your 1099-G with your tax records. You might need it later if there are any questions about your return.

This thread has been really helpful. I was in the same boat as OP and wasn't sure about the whole tax process for unemployment benefits. Definitely bookmarking this for reference.

For anyone who had Washington ESD benefits and moved to a different state, you'll still get your 1099-G from Washington but you might need to file tax returns in both states depending on the rules. Just something to keep in mind.