There’s some positive news for people who are in need of money during this challenging time. The Internal Revenue Service and Department of Treasury announced that in the next three weeks U.S. citizens will receive what they call “economic impact payments”.
Here is a breakdown of information that may be valuable to you.
How much is the economic impact payment?
The amount of the payment will be $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for married couples. If the individuals and married couples have children, they will receive $500 per child.
Who is eligible?
As part of the coronavirus relief package approved by the Senate last week, the stimulus payments will be sent to people who filed their taxes in 2018 or 2019. If you made $75,000 or less as an individual or $150,000 or less as a married couple in the tax years filed then you will qualify for an economic impact payment.
If you made more than the limit, payments will be reduced by $5 for every $100 over the maximums for an individual or married couple. Individual tax filers who exceed $99,000 and joint filers exceeding $198,000 with no children will not qualify for the payment.
How will I receive my payment?
Action is not required by most people as long as your taxes have been filed. The IRS will use the 2019 tax returns to calculate the qualifying amount and automatically distribute payments. If you did not file a tax return in 2019, the IRS will use your 2018 tax return. The payment will be sent direct deposit to the banking account on your filed tax return. If you have a different bank account, you will be able to input the new information on an online portal to be released to the public soon.
What if I haven’t filed a tax return?
You will not receive an economic impact payment if you have not filed taxes in 2018 or 2019. However, you still have time. The deadline for filing taxes has been extended to July 15, 2020. Payments will continue to be distributed throughout the year.
Updates will be provided at IRS.gov/coronavirus.
