What Information Will You Need
To access the tool, you’ll be asked to provide a:
- Social Security Number or Individual Tax ID Number
- Date of birth
- Street address and
- Five-digit ZIP or postal code.
If you file a joint tax return, either spouse can typically access the portal by providing their own information for the security questions used to verify a taxpayer’s identity. Once verified, the same payment status is shown for both spouses. In some cases, however, married couples who file a joint tax return may get their third stimulus payment as two separate payments half may come as a direct deposit and the other half will be mailed to the address the IRS has on file. If that case, each spouse should check the “Get My Payment” tool separately using their own Social Security number to see the status of their payments.
If you submit information that doesn’t match the IRS’s records three times within a 24-hour period, you’ll be locked out of the portal for 24 hours . You’ll also be locked out if you’ve already accessed the system five times within a 24-hour period. Don’t contact the IRS if you’re shut out. Instead, just wait 24 hours and try again.
What’s The First Step To Take
First, you need to log into the Internal Revenue Services Get My Payment tool.
Youll be able to find out when the IRS sent out your check, how much it should be, how it’ll be paid if there’s a delay and more.
To use it, youll need your Social Security Number or Individual Tax ID Number .
If you’ve forgotten your SSN or need a new card, see how you can get a replacement on the official SSN website.
Youll also need to enter your date of birth and address.
Irs Suggests Filing Tax Returns Electronically
The IRS notes on its website: “File your 2021 tax return electronically in 2022 and the tax software will help you figure your 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit.
“Your Recovery Rebate Credit will reduce any tax you owe for 2021 or be included in your tax refund, and can be direct deposited into your financial account.
“You can use a bank account, prepaid debit card or alternative financial products for your direct deposit. You will need to provide routing and account numbers.”
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New Site For Tax Filers
The Treasury Department will be setting up a new site where people who have filed tax returns can use the Get My Payment application to let the IRS know your bank account information if they do not already have it and you havent received your payment. Ill pen a new article once that site goes LIVE.
UPDATE 4/15/20Now Live: IRS Get My Payment Site Check Status of Your Stimulus Payment
Where’s My Stimulus Check
The first stimulus check recipients saw their payments show up in their bank accounts in mid-April. But some people who are also eligible for stimulus checks have not received their money, and they’re puzzled about why that is â and are perhaps in a panic over whether their coronavirus payment is coming at all.
Here are some of the possibilities why you might not have gotten a stimulus payment yet:
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You Receive Social Security Benefits
Unfortunately, for now at least, the Get My Payment app cannot track payments for people who receive Social Security, Social Security disability benefits, Railroad Retirement benefits, or veterans benefits. In the words of the IRS on the Get My Payments page, “If you are an SSA or RRB Form 1099 recipient or SSI or VA benefit recipient, your information is not yet available in this application.”
How Likely Is A Fourth Stimulus Check
Don’t hold your breath, according to Wall Street analysts. “I think it’s unlikely at this time,” Raymond James analyst Ed Mills told CNBC. One reason is that the Biden administration is focused on advancing its infrastructure plan, which would reshape the economy by rebuilding aging schools, roads and airports, as well as investing in projects ranging from affordable housing to broadband.
The proposal, which the White House says would be funded by boosting the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, will likely consume lawmakers this fall, said Stifel’s Brian Gardner in an August 11 research note.
“The fall is shaping up to be a busy time in Washington as Congress tries to finish two infrastructure bills , approve the annual spending bills, and raise the debt ceiling,” he noted.
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Still Havent Received Your First Or Second Stimulus Check
You may still be eligible. Learn more about eligibility on our website. You can still receive the first and/or second stimulus check by filing your 2020 taxes and claiming the Recovery Rebate Credit to receive any amount owed for you, your spouse, and dependent children under age 17. Check our Tax Help page for more resources on filing taxes.
Entering a bank account when you file taxes will help you receive your stimulus check faster. Learn more on our Banking Help page.
You may be eligible for even more money.
If you plan to file taxes to get your first or second stimulus check, you may be eligible for additional money! Congress has made changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit this year that mean more money for some people. Learn more on our Tax Help page.
Stimulus Check: How To Request A Payment Trace
There are two options to claim a payment trace. The first is to call 800-919-9835 and listen to all the recorded messages to be connected with an IRS agent. You can also download the Form 3911, Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund from the IRS website and either mail or fax the completed form to the agency.
Just be sure to follow these instructions, as laid out by the IRS:
- Write EPI3 at the top of the form, making it clear that the form is for the third Economic Impact Payment, the official name for the stimulus payments
- When you reach section 7, check the box for Individual as the Type of Return
- Enter 2021 as the Tax Period
- Leave Date Filed box blank
- Make sure to sign the form, but be aware that married couples filing jointly will both need to sign
You dont need to mail Form 3911 if you did your payment trace over the phone.
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Check The Status Of Your Third Economic Impact Payment
All Third Economic Impact Payments must be issued by Dec. 31, 2021 in accordance with the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, signed into law on March 11, 2021.
The IRS mailed Notice 1444-C to people who received a third Economic Impact Payment. You should keep this letter with your tax year 2021 records.
Check when and how your payment was sent with the Get My Payment tool.
Can You Use The Portal If You Didn’t File A Tax Return
You couldn’t use the “Get My Payment” tool to track the status of your first stimulus check if you didn’t file a 2018 or 2019 federal income tax return. However, there was another online tool that non-filers could use to give the IRS with the information it needed to process a payment.
The non-filers tool wasn’t used for second stimulus checks, though. Instead, if you didn’t file a 2019 tax return, and you didn’t use the non-filers tool to get your first-round payment, then you have to wait to claim your second stimulus check money as a Recovery Rebate credit on your 2020 return.
The IRS is not using the non-filers tool for third-round stimulus checks, either. As a result, if you don’t file a 2019 or 2020 tax return, you’ll have to claim any money you’re owed as a Recovery Rebate credit on your 2021 return, which you won’t file until next year. However, you can avoid having to wait until next year by filing a 2020 return before the May 17, 2021, deadline.
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The feds have created a way to see when your third coronavirus stimulus check will arrive but its far from foolproof.
The Internal Revenue Service reopened its Get My Payment tool so taxpayers can track the status of the $1,400 payments that started hitting bank accounts over the weekend.
The tool should be familiar to anyone who received either of the first two economic impact payments Congress authorized last year. Its a simple online form that should tell you whether your payment has been processed and when to expect it after you enter your Social Security number, birth date, street address and ZIP code.
But the tools latest iteration faced complaints from people who didnt see details about when the much-needed money would arrive.
Get My Payment became a trending topic on Twitter Monday morning as taxpayers griped about the tool spitting out four dreaded words: Payment Status Not Available.
The IRS says there are three reasons you might see that vague message. Its possible that your payment just hasnt been processed yet, or the IRS doesnt have enough information to send it to you.
It may also mean that youre not eligible for the check. Congress tightened the eligibility rules so that anyone making more than $80,000 a year wont receive any money. Full payments are still available to individuals who had an income of up to $75,000 on their 2019 or 2020 tax return.
Debt Collectors Could Take Some Of Your Covid Stimulus Check
The tool may show some taxpayers a Need More Information message, which means the Postal Service was unable to deliver your payment. Those people can use Get My Payment to submit bank account information to the IRS.
The Get My Payment tool wasnt the only source of grief for taxpayers awaiting their stimulus funds.
JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo customers slammed the banks on social media after they said the funds would not be available until at least Wednesday even though the first checks arrived this weekend.
Thats because March 17 is the official payment date on the first batch of checks, according to the banks. The IRS says some people may see the direct deposits show up as pending or provisional payments before that date.
This also isnt the first batch of complaints about Get My Payment. The tool told some people earlier this year that their $600 stimulus checks had been sent to unfamiliar bank accounts as the result of a snafu involving tax-preparation firms.
As the IRS distributed the first $1,200 checks last spring, some people who owed no tax and didnt get a refund on their most recent tax return were temporarily unable to expedite their payments before the feds fixed a bug in the Get My Payment tool.
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There’s A Glitch With Your Bank Tax Prep Software Or The Irs
This explanation may be the most frustrating of all for people wondering where the heck their stimulus checks are. But a mistake made by your bank, the IRS, or the tax-prep software you used to file returns could screw up your stimulus payment.
As the Washington Post reported, the stimulus payments for millions of taxpayers may be delayed because of a glitch with tax-prep software firms, such as TurboTax, H& R Block, and Jackson Hewitt. The IRS might not have direct deposit information for you if you used one of these services and received an advance on your tax refund, or if you paid for the service by deducting the fee from your tax refund. And if the IRS doesn’t have your direct deposit info, your stimulus check will be delayed. If you think this situation applies to you, use the IRS Get My Payment app to provide the agency with your direct deposit details.
You Get Social Security
Social Security recipients and people receiving Social Security disability benefits or Railroad Retirement benefits are eligible for stimulus checks, and they do not have to file taxes in order to receive a payment. However, if anyone in these groups has a dependent under age 17 and does not file taxes, they should add that information at the IRS’s “Non-Filers: Enter Payment Info Here” page in order to get an extra $500 per child.
The first people to get stimulus checks are those who have filed tax returns and have their direct deposit info on file with the IRS. People who receive Social Security or the other benefits mentioned above fall into a second category, and they will receive their payments in the next wave of deposits from the IRS. These people can expect their payments to show up in their bank accounts by the end of April, if not sooner. On the other hand, if federal agencies do not have your bank info on file, your payment will come in the mail as a paper check, and that process could take much longer.
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Moved Or Changed Your Bank Account Information
If your bank account has changed, the bank will return the money and the IRS will issue a paper check to your last known address. If you have moved, make sure you set up mail forwarding with the United States Postal Service so you can receive any mailed check at your current address:
Learn more about free resources to help you file your taxes on our Tax Help page. Entering a bank account when you file taxes will help you receive your stimulus check faster. Learn more on our Banking Help page.
Stimulus Check Tracker: What’s With The Payment Status Not Available Message On The Irs’s Get My Payment Tool
With a fair amount of fanfare, the IRS recently released its “Get My Payment” tool. This online app–located on the IRS website at irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment–is supposed to let you:
-
Check the status of your stimulus payment
-
Confirm your payment type
-
Get a projected direct deposit or paper check delivery date and
-
Enter your bank account information for direct deposit if the IRS doesn’t have your direct deposit information and they haven’t sent your payment yet.
Unfortunately, however, many people can’t get any information out of this tool. They keep getting a message saying: “Payment Status Not Available. According to information that we have on file, we cannot determine your eligibility for a payment at this time.” It can be very frustrating if you’re one of the people getting this message every day–believe me, I know, because I’m one of them.
According to the IRS, there are several reasons why the “Get My Payment” tool will give you the “Payment Status Not Available” messages, including:
For many of us, it looks like we’ll just need to wait a little longer. The IRS updates the tool once per day , and they’re working on adding more data to allow more people to use the tool. So, I guess working a little harder on being patient will do me some good.
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Didnt Get The Full First And Second Payments Claim The 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit
If you didnt get the full amount of the first or second Economic Impact Payments, you may be eligible to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit by filing a 2020 tax return. The third Economic Impact Payment will not be used to calculate the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit.
For the latest updates, check IRS.gov/coronavirus.
Still Living Paycheck To Paycheck
Some top economists have called for more direct aid to Americans. More than 150 economists, including former Obama administration economist Jason Furman, signed a letter last year that argued for “recurring direct stimulus payments, lasting until the economy recovers.”
Although the economy is improving, millions of people continue to suffer from reduced income and have not been able to tap government aid programs, Nasif said. Only 4 in 10 jobless workers actually received unemployment aid, according to a from economist Eliza Forsythe.
Many people never applied for unemployment benefits because they didn’t think they were eligible, while others may have given up due to long waits and other issues.
“You’ll see reports about how the economy is starting to grow, but there are a lot of Americans living paycheck to paycheck, and for a lot of them the government relief programs haven’t been able to help,” said Greg Nasif, political director of Humanity Forward.
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How Do I Claim This Stimulus Check
Extra payments are additional stimulus checks sent to those who received a stimulus check based on their 2019 tax return or information received from the Social Security Administration.
Eligible Americans should check the IRS’s Get My Payment tool for the status of their additional payments.
Taxpayers expecting extra cash who have not filed their 2020 tax return should file their taxes by Friday, Dec. 17, considering tax returns typically take two weeks for the IRS to process.
“Let’s 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,” Cassandra Kirby, a senior executive at wealth advisor Braun-Bostich & Associates in Pittsburgh, said to The Sun.
“However, in 2020, they had another child and their adjusted gross income dropped from $165,000 to $155,000,” she added.
This round of cash marks the ninth set of payments since Congress authorized the $1,400 stimulus checks in March.
The total number of payments sent to Americans is approximately $388 billion, according to CBS News.