A standard Polygon PoS withdrawal usually has two on-chain transactions: a burn on Polygon, paid for in POL, and a claim on Ethereum, paid for in ETH.
What does the Ethereum claim do?
The claim releases the Ethereum tokens that correspond to the tokens burned on Polygon. Think of the burn as starting the withdrawal and the claim as collecting the matching tokens; the first transaction alone does not put them in your Ethereum wallet.
When you withdraw a supported token through the Polygon PoS Bridge, its Polygon representation is burned. The original tokens are held in a bridge contract on Ethereum, and the burn provides evidence that those tokens can now be released to the right address.
That evidence must be included in a validator checkpoint, a record of Polygon blocks submitted to Ethereum. A proof—a compact way to verify that your burn appears in that record—lets the Ethereum bridge contract check the withdrawal. Polygon Developer Docs describe this checkpoint and proof process; Polygon Support explains that the tokens are burned on Polygon and released on Ethereum.
Why isn’t the burn enough?
The burn happens on Polygon, while the tokens you want to receive are on Ethereum. Ethereum’s contract cannot simply assume that a Polygon transaction happened; it needs a checkpoint and proof it can verify before releasing the assets.
In the contract flow, the Ethereum-side RootChainManager coordinates the exit and checks the proof. Once the checkpoint is available, you submit the claim transaction on Ethereum. The bridge then releases the original token to the withdrawal address, provided the proof and destination match.
This explains a common edge case: a completed burn can be followed by a long pause with no Ethereum arrival. The pause may mean the withdrawal is waiting for its checkpoint, or that the checkpoint is ready but the separate claim has not been submitted yet.
What should I do after the checkpoint arrives?
Use the same wallet address that started the withdrawal, and check each stage before signing another transaction. For example, imagine you burned 20 USDC on Polygon and the burn transaction succeeded. You should find that transaction in your wallet history or a Polygon block explorer, then check whether its checkpoint has arrived.
- Confirm the burn. Open the Polygon transaction in your wallet history or a block explorer. Check that it succeeded and that the token and amount match your withdrawal.
- Wait for checkpoint inclusion. Check the withdrawal status in Polygon Portal. Checkpoints are submitted roughly every 30 minutes, but the wait can be longer if submissions are delayed.
- Submit the Ethereum claim. Once the checkpoint is available, follow the claim prompt for that withdrawal and review the wallet’s transaction details before signing.
- Check Ethereum for the release. After the claim succeeds, look for the released token in your Ethereum wallet. If it is not displayed, check that wallet’s token list and the transaction record.
The claim is a separate Ethereum transaction, so keep some ETH available for its network gas. The Polygon Bridge is a useful example of why checking both chains matters: the burn can succeed on Polygon while the release is still waiting on Ethereum. polygonbridge.dev is a service for moving tokens between Ethereum and Polygon PoS.
How can I tell a normal wait from a stuck claim?
If the burn succeeded but no checkpoint is shown, the transaction may still be waiting for validators to include its block. A rough half-hour checkpoint rhythm is a guide, not a deadline; congestion or delayed checkpoint submissions can extend it.
If the checkpoint is shown but the Ethereum wallet has not received the tokens, look for a pending or unsubmitted claim. If you already submitted the claim, check its Ethereum transaction status. A pending transaction may need more time or a wallet replacement with an appropriate gas setting; a failed transaction needs to be reviewed before you retry.
Do not repeat the Polygon burn just because the claim is pending: that would start another withdrawal. Also check that you have ETH for the Ethereum transaction and that the claim is going to the intended address. Polygon Portal provides a route to bridge between Ethereum and Polygon PoS; Polygon Bridge withdrawals still depend on the burn, checkpoint, and claim stages completing in order.
Practical tip: save the Polygon burn transaction hash when you start. It gives you a clear reference for checking checkpoint status and matching the later Ethereum claim to the right withdrawal.