COVID Stimulus Check Update

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Back in March 2020, Congress approved the CARES Act to help Americans with economic challenges due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) by sending out stimulus checks. Individuals received up to $1200 while married couples received up to $2400. People with children under the age of 17, could receive up to an additional $500 for each qualifying child.

Most payments have been processed and received, but not everyone who qualified to receive the payment has been able to get the payment.

According to the IRS, people are eligible for the stimulus payment if they:

• Are a U.S. citizen or resident alien.
• Have a work-eligible Social Security number.
• Cannot be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s federal income tax return.

The IRS is now sending out letters (called the Notice 1444-A) to approximately 9 Million people who may be eligible for the payment, but have not yet received it. These people include low-income individuals or people who don’t normally file a tax return. The notice looks like this:

If you receive one of these letters, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you are entitled to the payment, it just means that the IRS doesn’t know if you’re entitled to the payment and needs further information to process the stimulus check. You can go to: https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here to enter in your information and start the process. You can also go to https://www.irs.gov/eip.

You only have until October 15th to claim your stimulus payment. After that date, you may still be able to get a payment if and when you file your 2020 taxes, so you’re not necessarily out the money entirely, you’ll just have to wait another half of a year to get it!

If you have questions, including whether or not you’re eligible to receive the stimulus payment, you can call the number on the notice: 1-800-919-9835 for assistance.