Stimulus Checks: Key Dates Seniors Need To Know
Millions of Americans are still waiting for their stimulus checks to help offset the economic turmoil of the coronavirus pandemic, including many senior citizens. In lots of cases, seniors are in highly specific groups when it comes to their checks, as they may be retired, collecting different kinds of benefits or accepting social security income. There are a few key dates in the stimulus check time line that seniors should be aware of.
For most Americans, if they are eligible for a stimulus check, it will simply come, with no action required on their part. The money is being distributed , in the same way that 2018 and 2019 tax returns were doled out, so those with a gross annual income of $99,000 or less have either gotten a direct deposit or have a check on the way. However, seniors living off of Social Security or Supplement Security Income are still eligible for the check, though they may not have filed a tax return in the last two years. They will need to take some action by May 5 to get their money.
Other important dates to keep in mind concern when exactly a payment might arrive. According to the IRS, people who filled out the non-filers form with direct deposit information began to receive their stimulus checks on April 29. It will take a while for all of these payments to go out, but the IRS said that direct deposits would be finished within a few days, and paper checks would follow in “early May.”
Am I Eligible For The Third Stimulus Check
The American Rescue Plan provides households with $1,400 for each adult, child and adult dependent, such as college students or elderly relatives.
The payments start declining for an individual once adjusted gross income exceeds $75,000 and go to zero once income hits $80,000. The payment starts declining for married couples when income exceeds $150,000 and goes to zero at $160,000.
A qualifying family of four would receive $5,600.
A Fourth Stimulus Check Is Possible
For most Americans, it is extremely unlikely a fourth stimulus check will be provided. Here are a few key reasons why:
For all of these reasons, another check is unlikely to happen unless conditions take a dramatic turn for the worse — such as another COVID-19 variant that is vaccine resistant, easily transmitted, and more deadly.
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Disabled Americans will also see their Social Security Disability Insurance rise by 5.9 per cent.
The average monthly benefit for disabled workers will go up by $76 – from $1,282 to $1,358 a month.
Despite the COLA increase prices are rising rapidly too, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics even reporting that since October 2020, consumers are paying on average 6.2 per cent more across the market.
Items like food products are up by 5.3 per cent, whereas energy costs are up by more than 30 per cent.
While the House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better Act on November 19, which includes some benefits for retirees, there is no sign yet of a stimulus check.
Read our stimulus checks live blog for the latest updates on Covid-19 relief…
Other benefits cover hearing services as part of Medicare and government has more power over negotiating drug prices with the pharmaceutical companies, but this bill is not going to be passed in the Senate ahead of 2022.
The plan was scuppered by Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin after he decided he wouldnt support the Build Back Better bill, leaving those people it supports left in the lurch.
Social Security benefits currently support 70million Americans, whether they’re elderly or disabled.
Nearly nine out of 10 individuals aged 65 and older receive the benefits, and they make up around 33 per cent of the income of the elderly.
Ssi Or Ssdi Beneficiaries: Are You Eligible For The Third Stimulus Check

If you’re over age 65 and a recipient of Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability Insurance, you were eligible for a first and second stimulus check, and will be eligible for a third. This also includes many VA recipients and Retired Railroad Workers.
Social Security recipients are now getting their stimulus checks, the IRS said, but those receiving VA benefits may have a few weeks to go.
If you count as someone else’s dependent, you may be eligible for stimulus money in the potential third round of checks.
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Will I Receive Stimulus Money
According to estimates, some 140 million American households and 175 million people will qualify for an Economic Impact Payment, as these payouts are officially known. The maximum disbursement for individual taxpayers is $1,200, with married couples filing jointly able to receive $2,400. Qualifying children aged 16 and under can also add $500 to a parent’s or household’s stimulus total. And yes, senior citizens receiving Social Security or Supplement Security Income are eligible for a payout.
Determining whether or not you’ll receive a stimulus check boils down to your adjusted gross income in your most recent tax filing , your tax-filing status, and your citizenship.
In order to receive the full payment amount, you’ll need to have an AGI of less than $75,000 as a single filer, $150,000 as a couple filing jointly, and $112,500 as a head-of-household filer. Conversely, single, married, and head-of-household filers with AGI’s above $99,000, $198,000, and $136,500, are respectively disqualified from receiving an Economic Impact Payment. If you happened to earn in-between these upper and lower income bounds, your payout will be reduced by $5 per $100 in AGI above the lower bound.
Why Did I Get An Extra Payment From Social Security This Month
The surcharge compensates the beneficiaries of the Insurance liability for any defects they incurred between January 2000 and July 2001, if pay. Who was affected by the mistake? The error affected people who qualified for Public Safety before January 2000.
Why did I receive an unexpected payment from Social Security?
If your pay bonus is not a result of federal incentives, it may be that an automated process in SSAs system has resulted in a change that affected your benefit rate. Or, SSA finds that you have not been paid in the past and need to correct the mistake.
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Do College Students Adult Dependents Get The Third Stimulus Check
Unlike the first and second rounds of checks, payments for dependents in the third round are not restricted to only children under 17.
According to the IRS website: Eligible families will get a payment based on all of their qualifying dependents claimed on their return, including older relatives like college students, adults with disabilities, parents and grandparents.
Now its important to note that if youre a dependent, the check wont go to you, itll go to whoever claims you as a dependent.
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Three Key Stimulus Check Dates Senior Citizens Need To Know
Now that you have a better idea of whether or not you’ll be receiving stimulus money, the question turns to when you’ll actually get it.
According to recent data from the Treasury Department, roughly 88 million Americans have already received $157.9 billion in stimulus money via direct deposit. But that still leaves roughly half of all eligible Americans without their Economic Impact Payment.
In particular, it leaves a lot of older Americans wondering where their stimulus money is. If you’re a Social Security, SSI, or Veterans benefit recipient who’s anxiously checking your bank account or mailbox and wondering when your payment will arrive, perhaps these three key dates from the Treasury Department may offer some clues.
It’s worth noting that if you currently receive your government benefit in the form of a check, as opposed to a direct deposit, it can take up to 14 days to receive a paper check, once issued.
Additionally, Social Security beneficiaries and Railroad Retirement recipients who have a qualifying dependent aged 16 or under have missed the April 22 deadline to provide their information to claim the extra $500 per child. Unless lawmakers choose to extend the deadline, seniors will have to wait until they file their 2020 tax year return to claim this payout.
The point is that if you’re a senior who’s currently receiving a government benefit, your payout should be arriving any day now.
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If I Receive Social Security Or Supplemental Security Income When Will I Receive My Economic Impact Payment
Date: November 18, 2021
The Internal Revenue Service has paid EIPs to Social Security beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income recipients.
If you did not receive all the EIP amount you think you and your family are eligible for that was provided in the American Rescue Plan, you should file a 2021 Federal tax return in 2022 to claim the amount you are owed.
Did You Miss The Deadline To Register Online For The First Stimulus Check
You may still be eligible to receive a payment in 2021 if:
- You did not register online, by mail and did not get a payment in 2020. OR
- You received a payment, but it wasnt the full amount of the Economic Impact Payment. The maximum credit is $1,200, or $2,400 if married filing jointly, plus $500 for each qualifying child.
Then:
When you file a 2020 Form 1040 or 1040SR you may be eligible for the Recovery Rebate Credit. Save your IRS letter – Notice 1444 Your Economic Impact Payment – with your 2020 tax records. Youll need the amount of the payment in the letter when you file in 2021.
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Stimulus Check Will Be Delivered By The First Week Of Each Month
COLA Stimulus Check payments should be mailed to all those born during the first 10 days of any month .
Workers will get a monthly check that will rise from $1,565 to $1,657. Remember that a rise in salary is tied to an increase in the consumer price index inflation as measured by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Individuals born between January 11 and January 20 will be eligible for benefits on the third Wednesday of the month.
Those with birthdays between the 21st and 31st of the month will also get paid on the fourth Wednesday of the month.
Throughout December, the Social Security Administration distributed COLA Stimulus Check notices to retirement, survivor, and disabled recipients. The monthly stipend for SSI beneficiaries will rise from $794 to around $841. They will also be sent letters outlining the reason for the hike.
Divorced pensioners and their ex-spouses are also entitled to supplementary benefits. If your ex-spouse is entitled to retirement benefits, the SSA will pay that sum first.
Stimulus Checks For Social Security Recipients: Group Pushes Congress For One

For months, millions of Americans have been wondering if they will receive a fourth stimulus check this year.
A seniors advocacy group called the Senior Citizens League is calling on Congress to approve a one-time stimulus check payment to social security recipients.
The advocacy groups Chairman Rick Delaney recently sent letters to Congress asking for one-time $1,400 stimulus payments, according to Yahoo Finance. In the letters, Delaney claimed the organization heard from thousands of seniors asking for relief.
In the latter, Delaney stated, Weve heard from thousands of them who have exhausted their retirement savings, who have started eating just one meal a day, started cutting their pills in half because they cant afford their prescription drugs, to list just a few of the drastic steps so many have had to take because of what inflation has done to them this year.
According to GOBankingRates, Mary Johnson whos a Social Security and Medicare policy analyst at TSCL, said the checks would help with seniors 6% increase in cost of living expected next year.
There are several reasons why a $1,400 stimulus check for Social Security recipients is still greatly needed, Johnson wrote in an email to GOBankingRates.
Though, Delaney acknowledged in his letter that he doubts Congress will vote on any bill initiating the $1,400 stimulus checks this year.
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Will Social Security Recipients Get A 4th Stimulus Check
While it is unlikely that the general public will get a fourth stimulus check, an influential, non-partisan group that lobbies on behalf of senior citizens is trying to persuade Congress to send a $1,400 check to Social Security recipients so they can battle inflation.Jenny Kane | AP Photo
While it is unlikely that the general public will get a fourth stimulus check, an influential, non-partisan group that lobbies on behalf of senior citizens is trying to persuade Congress to send a $1,400 check to Social Security recipients so they can battle inflation.
The Senior Citizens League sent a letter to members of Congress in the House and Senate, urging them to consider a targeted stimulus towards senior citizens.
Weve heard from thousands of them who have exhausted their retirement savings, who have started eating just one meal a day, started cutting their pills in half because they cant afford their prescription drugs, to list just a few of the drastic steps so many have had to take because of what inflation has done to them this year, the letter reads. Many have written to us that our government has forgotten about us.
In 2022, Social Security checks will have one of the largest cost-of-living adjustments in years, with increases of more than 6%.
This could also lead to surcharges for their Medicare Part B premiums, according to Fortune.
What Should I Do If Not Everyone In My Household Received Their Economic Income Payments
Date: November 18, 2021
The Internal Revenue Service has paid EIPs to Social Security beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income recipients.
If you did not receive all the EIP amount you think you and your family are eligible for that was provided in the American Rescue Plan, you should file a 2021 Federal tax return in 2022 to claim the amount you are owed.
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Why Is That A Bad Thing
The bigger checks going forward may be too little, too late. Higher prices have been savaging seniors bank accounts for a while, the league says, and last years bump only amounted to an extra $20 a month for the average recipient.
Many seniors are now deep in debt, and a boost matching the rate of inflation next year will only maintain the status quo.
Cost-of-living adjustments also do a poor job of keeping pace with health care hikes and federal taxes, notes a recent report from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.
Medicare part B premiums, which are deducted automatically from Social Security benefits, have risen twice as fast as the COLA over the past 20 years. And the threshold at which Social Security benefits get taxed $25,000 for single taxpayers isnt regularly adjusted, meaning more and more recipients are getting taxed over time.
When the taxation of benefits was first introduced in 1983, only 8% of eligible families paid taxes on their benefits. Today, the estimate is that 56% of beneficiary families pay taxes on their benefits, the researchers say.
Lastly, some low-income seniors are worried that a boost to their taxable income could affect their access to food benefits, rental subsidies and other forms of support. A stimulus check would be one way to feed them consequence-free cash.
Will My Stimulus Check Arrive As An Eip Card
The IRS projects that 5 million stimulus payments will be made by Economic Impact Payment debit card, but checks going out to Social Security recipients wont take the form of an EIP card. According to the SSA support website: The IRS does not plan to issue prepaid debit cards to beneficiaries for this third round of EIPs The Social Security Administration does not administer the EIP debit card program, and did not decide who received an EIP debit card instead of a paper check.
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Amount Of Your Third Stimulus Check
Every eligible American will receive a $1,400 third stimulus check “base amount.” The base amount jumps to $2,800 for married couples filing a joint tax return. You also get an extra $1,400 for each dependent in your family .
Not everyone will receive the full amount, though. As with the first two stimulus payments, third-round stimulus checks will be reduced potentially to zero for people reporting an adjusted gross income above a certain amount on their latest tax return. If you filed your most recent tax return as a single filer, your third stimulus check will be phased-out if your AGI is $75,000 or more. That threshold jumps to $112,500 for head-of-household filers, and to $150,000 for married couples filing a joint return. Third-round stimulus checks will be completely phased out for single filers with an AGI above $80,000, head-of-household filers with an AGI over $120,000, and joint filers with an AGI exceeding $160,000.
You can use our handy Third Stimulus Check Calculator to get a customized estimated payment amount. All you have to do is answer three easy questions.
Can A Nursing Home Or Assisted Living Facility Take The Payment From Me
No. If you qualify for a payment, its yours to keep. If a loved one qualifies and lives in a nursing home, residential care home or assisted living facility, its theirs to keep. The facility may not put their hands on it or require somebody to sign it over to them. Even if that somebody is on Medicaid.
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