Will adjudication stop my ESD payments if I already received 2 payments on my claim?

Yes, adjudication can potentially pause your payments until they resolve whatever issue they're investigating. ESD is required to continue paying benefits if the adjudication wasn't started within 21 days of the issue being detected, but that doesn't always happen automatically. You should absolutely continue filing your weekly claims during this period - that's critical even if payments pause temporarily.

Oh no, that's what I was afraid of. Do you know if there's any way to find out what they're even investigating? Nothing shows up in my online account under

Just went thru this exact thing!! They put my claim in adjudication after 3 payments for

SIX WEEKS??!! That's insane! Did you ever find out what the actual issue was? Did they backpay you for all those weeks once they approved your claim?

If you're seeing adjudication, you need to immediately try to get on the phone with an ESD agent. They're the only ones who can tell you what issue they're reviewing and how it might affect your payments. The typical responses are:\n\n1. Payments may continue if it's a minor issue\n2. Payments may stop completely until resolved\n3. They might do a partial payment hold\n\nThe problem is getting through to ESD these days is nearly impossible. I tried for two weeks straight using their regular number - constantly busy signals or disconnects.

I've already tried calling 10+ times today and either get a message saying they're at capacity or it just disconnects me. Is there any special time of day that works better? Or some trick to getting through to an actual person?

Try Claimyr to get through to ESD! It worked for me last month when I had a similar adjudication issue. The service basically holds your place in line and calls you when an agent is ready. Saved me days of frustration. Their site is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. Totally worth it to actually speak to someone who can explain what's happening with your claim.

does that actually work?? sounds too good to be true tbh. has anyone else tried this?

I had a similar situation happen last year. Adjudication can happen for many reasons - sometimes it's just routine verification, other times it's because your employer contested something, or there might be a discrepancy in your application. \n\nIn my case, they continued paying me for 3 more weeks during adjudication, then payments suddenly stopped. The most important thing is to KEEP FILING YOUR WEEKLY CLAIMS EVERY WEEK even if payments pause. If they approve your claim after adjudication, they'll pay all those weeks at once.\n\nTo find out what the issue is, try sending a secure message through your eServices account. Sometimes they respond faster that way than by phone.

Thanks for the suggestion about the secure message. I just sent one asking for details about my adjudication. How long did yours take to resolve? Did they backpay you for the weeks that were on hold?

Yes, they did backpay me for everything. Mine took 4 weeks to resolve, but I've heard it can take anywhere from 2-8 weeks depending on the complexity of the issue and their current workload. The fact that you've already received two payments is actually a good sign - it means your claim was initially approved. Sometimes adjudication happens because of something in your weekly claims, like if you reported any earnings or answered a question differently than expected.

@questionperson - YES they did eventually backpay me for all 6 weeks but it was a NIGHTMARE waiting. The issue was that i said i had a doctors appt on one of my weekly claims and checked

That's crazy it took so long for just a doctor's appointment! I wonder if mine might be something similar. I did report that I had a job interview last week that took a few hours, but I still put that I was available for work every day. Maybe that triggered something?

whatever u do DONT use ur credit card to pay bills while waiting!!! thats what i did last time i got stuck in adjudcation and now im still paying off that debt. they took 9 WEEKS to decide my case and i almost got evicted. the whole system is designed to make ppl give up on benefits they deserve

While I understand your frustration, 9 weeks is unusually long. Most adjudication cases are resolved within 4-6 weeks, and they legally should continue payments after 21 days if the issue wasn't detected immediately. Did you ever speak with a supervisor about the delay? Sometimes escalating to a supervisor can speed things up.

@fileclaimsfaster - Yes, Claimyr definitely works! I was skeptical too at first but I was desperate after trying to call ESD for 3 days straight. They connected me with an ESD agent who explained exactly what triggered my adjudication (in my case it was because my employer reported different earnings than I did for my last week of work). The agent was able to expedite my adjudication since it was a simple verification issue.

I'm going through adjudication right now too! I'm on week 5 of waiting... but I'm STILL getting paid every week. It seems completely random whether they pause payments or not during adjudication. From talking to people and reading online, it seems to depend on what type of issue triggered the review. If it's a simple verification thing, payments often continue. If it's something more complex like employer dispute, benefit eligibility, or potential fraud flags, they usually pause payments until it's resolved.

That's really helpful info, thanks! I'm going to file my weekly claim today and see if a payment comes through this week. Fingers crossed it's just a routine verification. I had no issues with my employer when I was laid off, so hopefully it's not that.

Just a follow-up suggestion - while you're waiting for adjudication, make sure you're meeting all your job search requirements (3 activities per week) and documenting them thoroughly. If the adjudication is resolved in your favor, but they find you weren't meeting job search requirements during that time, it could trigger a whole new issue. The ESD system is very particular about these requirements in 2025.

UPDATE: I got through to ESD this morning! Used that Claimyr service someone mentioned here and it actually worked - got a call back with an agent in about 45 minutes. The adjudication is because they need to verify my identity (apparently routine for some new claims). The agent said I'll likely continue receiving payments during this process since it's just verification, not an eligibility issue. Such a relief! She said to just keep filing weekly claims as normal. Thank you everyone for your advice and support!

That's great news! Identity verification adjudications usually resolve fairly quickly. Just make sure you upload any documents they requested as soon as possible. Glad you got some peace of mind!