How Do I Find My Stimulus Money What To Do About A Missing $1400 Check
Your third stimulus payment could be delayed for a variety of reasons. Well help you track down your IRS payment.
Alison DeNisco Rayome
Managing Editor
Alison DeNisco Rayome is a managing editor at CNET, now covering home topics after writing about services and software. Alison was previously an editor at TechRepublic.
Clifford Colby
Managing Editor
Clifford is a managing editor at CNET. He spent a handful of years at Peachpit Press, editing books on everything from the first iPhone to Python. He also worked at a handful of now-dead computer magazines, including MacWEEK and MacUser. Unrelated, he roots for the Oakland As.
To date, the IRS has made 169 million payments for the third round of stimulus checks for $1,400. The agency continues to send weekly batches of payments, so there is still time if you are waiting for your money. However, there could actually be an issue with your payment and the IRS doesnt want you to call them with problems related to a missing check.
Reasons for a delay could include a lag in mail delivery , if the IRS has incorrect direct deposit information for you or if the agency suspects identity theft. There might be other problems if youre a recipient of SSI, SSDI or veterans benefits. Or maybe you received a letter from the IRS saying that your $1,400 payment was sent, but the check never arrived. Then what?
Most People Who Qualify Under The Cares Act Should Receive Their Payment Automatically But Some May Need To Submit Their Information To The Irs To Receive Their Economic Impact Payment
As a result of the hardships presented by the coronavirus, Economic Impact Payments are being issued by the Internal Revenue Service. While most people will receive their payment automatically, there are some cases where non-filers will need to take action and submit their information to the IRS.
The best way to submit your info to receive the payment is through the IRS Non Filers Enter Payment Info portal. There, youll choose how you want to receive your payment. The fastest way to receive payment is through direct deposit, either to your bank or credit union account, or to an eligible prepaid card.
How Are Married Couples Affected If Only One Spouse Has A Social Security Number
As with EIP2, joint filers where only one spouse has a Social Security number will normally get the third payment. This means that these families will now get a payment covering any family member who has a work-eligible SSN.
For taxpayers who file jointly with their spouse and only one individual has a valid SSN, the spouse with a valid SSN will receive up to a $1,400 third payment and up to $1,400 for each qualifying dependent claimed on the 2020 tax return.
Active Military: If either spouse is an active member of the U.S. Armed Forces at any time during the taxable year, only one spouse needs to have a valid SSN for the couple to receive up to $2,800 for themselves in the third stimulus payment.
Recommended Reading: Stimulus Check For Expecting Mothers 2022
I Understand A Third Round Of Economic Impact Payments Have Been Approved When Will I Receive My Payment
According to the IRS, the third round of Economic Impact Payments, or EIP3 is being issued in phases to eligible individuals. The IRS began sending the first batch of payments with an official payment date of March 17 and will continue to send payments to eligible individuals each week as they continue to process tax returns. Payments are being sent by direct deposit or through the mail as a check or a debit card. Eligible individuals should use the Get My Payment tool to find out when and how the EIP3 was sent. Please note the payment status for the first and second Economic Impact Payments is no longer available using the Get My Payment Tool. To get information on the first or second round of Economic Impact Payments, the IRS requires eligible individuals to view or create an online account. You can also check your mail for IRS Notices 1444 and 1444-B. Refer to the IRS website for more information.
Based on information from the IRS, if you did not receive a first and/or second Economic Impact Payment or if you received less than the full amount, you may be eligible to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2020 tax return even if you do not usually file a tax return.
Last Reviewed: April 2021
Your Financial Situation Changed From 2019 To 2020
Any changes to your financial situation in 2020 may affect your payment amount and receipt.
For most people, this will result from job or income loss due to the pandemic. If your income was higher than the phaseout thresholds in 2019, but your hours were cut or you only worked for part of 2020, you can claim the stimulus money you didnt receive using the Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 tax return.
If you had a baby in 2020, got married or divorced, you were previously claimed as a dependent, or you have a child who aged out of being claimed as a dependent, you may receive more after claiming the credit as well.
When youre ready to file 2020 federal taxes, an accountant or tax filing service may be helpful to clarify your exact eligibility. If you file on your own, your Form 1040 will include a Recovery Rebate Credit worksheet to help you determine the total amount youre eligible for.
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Havent Received Your Third Stimulus Payment Yet
The IRS will continue to send checks via the Treasury. The majority who have received a first or second payment dont need to do anything more to get the third payment, which often will be sent out automatically. Following the model of the second round of checks, payments should be issued automatically to people who:
- Filed 2019 or 2020 federal tax returns. The IRS will use the taxpayers latest processed return.
- Registered for the first round of stimulus payments through the non-filer portal on IRS.gov by Nov. 21, 2020.
- Receive Social Security , Supplemental Security Income , or Railroad Retirement Board or Veterans Affairs benefits.
Those receiving Social Security and other federal benefits will generally receive this third payment the same way as their regular benefits.
The IRS Get My Payment Tool allows you to provide information to the agency for a stimulus check and to track payment status.
If you got your payment based on your 2019 return and find that youre entitled to more based on your 2020 return, the IRS will compute the additional amount owed to you.
Who Qualifies For The Third Stimulus Check
Millions of Americans who were eligible for the $600 second stimulus checks could qualify for the third round of stimulus payments up to $1,400. However, many high-earning taxpayers who were eligible for previous stimulus checks are now excluded. The plan narrows income eligibility to exclude individuals earning over $80,000 and couples making over $160,000:
- Singles phase out at AGIs between $75,000 and $80,000.
- Heads of household phase out at AGIs between $112,500 and 120,000.
- Couples phase out at AGIs between $150,000 and $160,000.
Keep in mind that this is different from the sliding scale that was used to determine eligibility for previous stimulus payments. The IRS reduced second stimulus checks by 5% for the total amount made over the AGI limit. This means that payments went down by $5 for every $100 over the limit.
The table below breaks down third stimulus payments based on narrower income ranges for singles and joint tax filers:
| $1,400 Stimulus Checks With Narrower Income Ranges |
| Single AGI |
| $174,000 and up | $0 |
If you want to get a specific breakdown, SmartAssets third stimulus check calculator will give you an estimate based on your filing status, AGI and dependents.
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Third Stimulus Check Calculator
President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act on March 11, 2021. Provisions in the bill authorized a third round of stimulus checks worth $1,400 for each eligible person , plus an additional $1,400 for each dependent. However, as with the first- and second-round payments, the third-round stimulus checks were reduced or eliminated for people with an income above a certain amount.
If you didnt receive a third stimulus check, or didnt receive the full amount, you can get any money youre entitled to by claiming the recovery rebate tax credit on your 2021 tax return. If youre wondering if you qualify for the credit, comparing what you should have received to what you actually received is a good place to start .
To see how large your third stimulus payment should have been, answer the three questions in the calculator below and well give you a customized estimate.
Take Action Before Deadline
Americans looking to score a surprise stimmy need to act quickly because the IRS has a December 31 deadline for issuing the payments.
The IRS will not issue plus-up payments beyond then.
The easiest way to do this is to provide a 2020 tax return.
Once the IRS has this, they will evaluate whether you are eligible or not.
Americans can check the status of their stimulus check using the IRS Get my Payment Tool.
About 500,000 plus-up payments have been made via direct deposit, while the rest were via checks.
Cassandra Kirby, a senior executive at wealth advisor Braun-Bostich & Associates in Pittsburgh, said: Lets say a married couple with one child had adjusted gross income of $165,000 in 2019, and because their income was more than $160,000, they are not eligible for any portion of the third payment.
However, in 2020, they had another child, and their adjusted gross income dropped from $165,000 to $155,000.
Thats because they would fall within the $150,000 to $160,000 threshold with an additional dependent and would be eligible for $2,800 in stimulus money.
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If I Am The Custodial Parent And Ive Neverreceivedtanf Or Medicaid For My Child Will I Receive Any Money From A Tax Return Intercepted By The Federal Government From The Noncustodial Parent On My Case
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Maybe.If the noncustodial parent owes you child support arrears and the total arrears onall ofthe noncustodial parents cases meets the threshold amounts indicated in Questions #2, then you should be entitled to receive monies intercepted from the noncustodial parents tax return. The amount of the money you receive will depend on a number of factors, including the amount of the tax return intercepted, the amounts owed to you in your case, and the number of other child support cases in which the noncustodial parent owes child support arrears. You must also have a full-service case open with the Child Support Division to be entitled to receive any monies from an intercepted federal tax return.
How Are Payment Amounts Determined
The third round of Economic Impact Payments will be based on a taxpayers latest processed tax return from either 2020 or 2019.
The payments would amount to $1,400 for a single person or $2,800 for a married couple filing jointly, plus an additional $1,400 for each dependent child.
Payments start to decline for incomes above $75,000 for single people and $150,000 for married couples until phasing out completely for individuals making above $80,000 and couples making above $160,000.
Find answers to your stimulus questions at USATODAY.com
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The Irs Tool Might Say Your Payment Was Sent To You
If the IRS’ online tool says the agency has issued your stimulus money, but you have no record of it in your bank account and it never arrived in your mailbox, you may need to take one of these steps, including possibly filing a stimulus check payment trace. You’ll need to have the letter the IRS sent you.
My Payment Tool Is Not Available What Should I Do
If you did not receive any stimulus payment or you were missing one installment, then you should use my payment tool on the official website of the Internal Revenue Service. But, recently, the government announced that they are going to disconnect the tool. So, if you have any issue related to your stimulus payment, you can use an online IRS account, or you can use Recovery rebate credit.
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I Received An Irs Letter That Confirmed My Stimulus Payment But I Have Not Received The Payment What Should I Do
The IRS sends a notice by mail to your last known address within 15 days after issuing the payment to confirm the delivery. The notice contained information like when and how the payment was made. If you have not received the payment like the notice set, then you can report it back to the Internal Revenue Service.
What To Do If You Cant Find Your Stimulus Check
If your IRS online account shows that you should have received a stimulus payment, but you didnât get it, thereâs a chance it could have been lost in the mail. Or you might have thrown away the prepaid debit card you received.
If you lost your stimulus check or suspect it was stolen, you can request the IRS trace your payment. If the IRS determines your check hasnât been cashed, it will issue a credit to your account. It canât reissue your payment, but you can claim the payment on your 2021 tax return using the Recovery Rebate Tax Credit worksheet.
If a trace is initiated and the IRS determines that the check wasnât cashed, the IRS will credit your account for that payment. However, the IRS canât reissue your payment. Instead, you will need to claim the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2021 tax return if eligible.
If you lost your EIP card, a prepaid debit card on which some individuals received their stimulus payment, contact card issuer MetaBank to request a replacement.
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First Round Of Cares Act Stimulus Checks: What Expats Should Know
Q. What did the CARES Act 2020 Coronavirus stimulus check mean for U.S. expats?
A. The CARES Act stimulus check expats got in 2020 was technically a 2020 tax credit in advance.
It was part of the CARES Act Coronavirus stimulus package, which was designed to help get the economy back on its feet while we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. In it are a variety of benefits for both individuals and corporations to ease the financial burden of the shutdowns and shelter-in-place orders. For the average American, the main benefits are cash payments and a variety of other debt relief options. The amount each taxpayer got depends on a variety of factors.
Q. Did I qualify for a CARES Act stimulus check if I live overseas?
A. Yes, expats qualified for the CARES Act stimulus checks. You qualified if you fell within the income threshold, had a social security number, and filed taxes even if you lived overseas. If you didnt get it, you can still apply for it retroactively as a tax credit on your 2020 tax return.
Q. What is the Recovery Rebate Credit?
A. If you didnt get the full amount you were owed, you may be able to apply for the Recovery Rebate Credit. Any eligible individual who did not receive the full amount of the recovery rebate as an advance payment, also known as an Economic Impact Payment, can claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on a 2020 Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR.
Q. How much was the CARES Act stimulus check for?
Q. Did I have to pay back the amount I got?
A. No
Questions And Answers About The Third
These updated FAQs were released to the public in Fact Sheet 2022-22PDF, March 25, 2022.
If you didn’t receive, or get the full amount of, the third-round Economic Impact Payment, you may be eligible to claim the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2021 tax return even if you don’t usually file taxes to claim it. Your 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit will reduce any tax you owe for 2021 or be included in your tax refund.
If your income is $73,000 or less, you can file your federal tax return electronically for free through the IRS Free File Program. The fastest and most secure way to get your tax refund is to file electronically and have it direct deposited, contactless and free, into your financial account. You can have your refund direct deposited into your bank account, prepaid debit card, or mobile app, and will need to provide routing and account numbers.
If you didn’t get the full amounts of the first and second Economic Impact Payments, you may be eligible to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2020 tax return even if you don’t usually file taxes to claim it. DO NOT include any information regarding the first and second Economic Impact Payments or the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2021 return.
Why didn’t I receive the third-round Economic Impact Payment if I received the first and second one?
What can I do if I think the amount of my third-round Economic Impact Payment is incorrect?
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