WORKFORCE WONKERY · QUICKSTART · EXIT + FOLLOW-UP · WORKING · ABOUT 15 MIN
Exit a Participant and Start Follow-Up
Use this when active services appear to be ending and you need to determine whether the participant should remain active, when the exit date will be established, whether common-exit rules apply, and how follow-up should begin. The goal is to let the actual service record drive exit—not administrative convenience or a desired performance result.
Before you act
Orientation, not instruction. This AI-assisted playbook does not receive human legal or compliance review. Automated source check completed September 18, 2026. Consequential claims were compared against the primary authorities identified in the Source + Trust Record below. Local policy, grant or contract terms, and required approvals may add rules or procedures, so check those before acting. Trust standard →
Use this when active services appear to be ending and you need to determine whether the participant should remain active, when the exit date will be established, whether common-exit rules apply, and how follow-up should begin. The goal is to let the actual service record drive exit—not administrative convenience or a desired performance result.
You should know which service starts the 90-day clock, whether later activity restarts it, whether a future service prevents exit, whether common exit or an exclusion applies, and what follow-up/documentation belongs in the record.
The current controlling federal or California source, grant or agreement terms, and your adopted local policy.
CalJOBS activity history across relevant programs, case notes, planned services, co-enrollment information, participant status, follow-up plan, and current WSD24-05/CalJOBS procedures.
Last clock-restarting service → any later service that restarts clock? → future participant-level service planned? → common-exit programs still active? → exclusionary reason? → 90 days → retroactive exit date → follow-up → verify record.
1. Find the last service that can actually delay exit
Do not use the most recent case note, login, email, or administrative action as the exit anchor. Identify the most recent participant-level service that counts under current federal and CalJOBS guidance.
| Activity | Does it delay/restart exit? |
|---|---|
| Participant-level staff-assisted career service, individualized career service, training service, qualifying Youth program element, or other applicable participant-level service | Generally yes. Apply the current activity-code/service rules. |
| Self-service activity | No. |
| Information-only activity that does not require individualized staff assessment | No. |
| Follow-up service | No. Follow-up occurs after the active-service phase and does not postpone exit. |
| Adult/DW supportive service | No clock reset. TEGL 10-16 Change 3 states supportive services do not delay exit. They should not be entered or timed simply to keep the case active. |
2. Ask whether a real future service is planned
A future service can prevent exit when it is genuinely planned as part of the participant’s service strategy. “We may call the participant later” is not a planned service. A defensible future service should have enough detail to show what service, why it is planned, expected timing, and who is responsible.
3. Check common exit before closing a co-enrolled participant
California uses CalJOBS as a common system of record and applies common-exit logic across applicable DOL-administered programs. If the participant is co-enrolled, review activity in every program to which the current common-exit policy applies. A participant should not common-exit while another covered program is still providing a clock-restarting service or has a documented future service planned.
4. Distinguish ordinary exit from an exclusionary exit
An exclusionary exit is still an exit, but the participant is excluded from one or more performance calculations for a qualifying reason. Under current federal performance guidance, Adult/DW exclusions include:
| Potential exclusion | Core test |
|---|---|
| Incarceration / 24-hour institution | Participant exits because they became incarcerated or became a resident of an institution/facility providing 24-hour support during participation. |
| Medical treatment | Treatment is expected to last longer than 90 days and prevents unsubsidized employment or continued participation. |
| Death | Participant is deceased. |
| Reserve/National Guard call to active duty | Participant exits because they are called to active duty for at least 90 days. |
Youth has an additional federal exclusion for certain foster-care participants who move from the local area as part of the foster-care system. Use the current federal/California definition and CalJOBS coding procedure before selecting an exclusion.
5. Establish the exit date only after the test is complete
Once 90 days have elapsed since the last clock-restarting service, no future services are planned, and any common-exit considerations are satisfied, the system establishes the exit date retroactively as the last date of service. Do not substitute the 90th day, the date staff noticed the case, or the date a closure form was completed for the actual last service date.
6. Start follow-up without turning it into performance chasing
Follow-up should support employment retention, education/training progress, problem-solving, and continued connection as appropriate to the program. It can also collect allowable outcome information, but its purpose is not simply to chase documents for a performance numerator. Follow-up does not restart active participation or change the exit date.
7. Practice the harder cases
Case A · Employment after training, no more active services
Think: identify the last participant-level service and start the 90-day clock. Planned check-ins are follow-up, not a reason to keep the participant active.
Case B · Transportation payment after the last career service
Think: an Adult/DW supportive service does not delay exit. Do not reset the clock solely because the supportive-service payment occurred later.
Case C · Training is scheduled to begin later
Think: if the future participant-level service is genuinely planned and documented, do not treat the participant as having no future services merely because more than 90 days could pass. Document the specific future service and timing.
Case D · Title I case appears finished, but another covered CalJOBS program is active
Think: check current common-exit rules and the other program’s services before assuming a common exit. A clock-restarting service in another covered program may keep the common period open.
Case E · Participant enters long-term medical treatment
Think: determine whether the federal exclusion criteria are met—expected duration longer than 90 days and treatment prevents employment or continued participation. Do not use an exclusion merely because the participant is temporarily unavailable.
8. Common mistakes
- Using the 90th day as the exit date.
- Letting self-service, information-only, follow-up, or supportive services artificially reset exit.
- Leaving a case active because a future service is merely possible.
- Closing one program without checking common-exit activity.
- Using follow-up as a substitute for active career or training services.
- Choosing an exclusion because performance would otherwise be unfavorable.
- Backdating or creating an activity after the fact to change exit timing.
9. Write the transition clearly
MODEL EXIT / FOLLOW-UP CASE NOTE
Exit review: Participant’s last clock-restarting service was [service] on [date]. Activity after that date consists of [self-service / information-only / follow-up / supportive service / none] and does not delay exit under current guidance. [No future participant-level services are planned / Future service ___ is scheduled for ___ and participant remains active.] [Common-exit review completed for applicable co-enrolled programs; no covered clock-restarting services remain.] [If applicable: exclusion reason ___ is supported by ___.] Follow-up plan: [method/frequency/purpose].
Required, local, or judgment?
| Question | Who controls it? |
|---|---|
| Federal definition/timing of exit | TEGL 10-16 Change 3 / federal performance rules |
| Which CalJOBS activities correspond to services | California WSD24-05 + current CalJOBS guidance |
| Whether a future service is genuinely planned | Staff determination supported by the service plan |
| Common-exit implementation in CalJOBS | Current state/federal reporting policy |
| Performance exclusions | Federal criteria + California coding/documentation |
| Follow-up design | Program requirements + local procedure + participant need |
Reviewer lens
- What was the last clock-restarting service?
- Did staff correctly treat self-service, information-only, follow-up, and supportive services?
- Are future services real and documented?
- Was common exit checked?
- If an exclusion was used, is every criterion supported?
- Do CalJOBS, case notes, and the follow-up record tell the same story?
Stop and escalate when
- Staff want to add/backdate an activity to prevent or change exit.
- A future service is claimed but not actually scheduled or documented.
- Common-exit programs show conflicting activity.
- The proposed exclusion does not clearly meet the federal definition.
- A correction would affect a closed reporting period or prior performance submission.
- Different CalJOBS reports show conflicting exit dates.
Current policy starting points: DOL TEGL 10-16 Change 3 · California WSD24-05 · WSD24-07 · WSD20-10 · current CalJOBS Staff Online Resources and Local Area follow-up procedures.
Source checked as of September 18, 2026.
SOURCE + TRUST RECORD
Source checked as of September 18, 2026. Source basis: WSD24-05 · CalJOBS Activity Codes · WSD20-10 · CalJOBS Participant Reporting · TEGL 10-16, Change 3.
Check result: The 90-day exit framework, retroactive exit date, treatment of supportive and follow-up services, and performance-reporting relationship are supported by the cited sources. Common-exit applicability and program-specific follow-up procedures must be checked against the participant’s actual co-enrollments and current California/local procedures. No human legal or compliance review was performed. Official sources and applicable local policy control.
Do not let the Quickstart replace the controlling source or turn a local practice into a rule.
The authority is unclear, an exception is needed, the facts are unusual, or the decision creates material fiscal, legal, civil-rights, data, procurement, or governance risk. Use the escalation guide →
Check the current directive, regulation, grant term, agreement, and adopted local policy before acting.