This stimulus payments started coming today, and my phone was ringing.
If you have not received your stimulus money you can go here and try to find out when it is coming. I am seeing no rhyme or reason as to why some people have received it and some have not.
If you think that the IRS does not have your banking information (and direct deposit will absolutely be faster than the paper checks) you can go to the same place and input your banking info. However I tried it several times today just so I could tell people how it was working and I couldn’t get past the ID screen.
If you receive your Social Security payments via direct deposit there is nothing you need to do. The IRS will use that information for your stimulus payment.
If you do not receive Social Security but do not have a filing requirement because your income is too low, go to the same place, but look at the right side of the screen for Non-filers.
If you had a filing requirement, but have not filed for 2018 or 2019, I’m sorry. You are out of luck. Getting you caught up may help, and I have seen reference to filing 2019 “as soon as possible”, but I have no idea where that will put you in the queue.
Also, just a reminder, this stimulus payment is a credit that will be accounted for on your 2020 tax return. It is NOT taxable income. It is NOT an advance on your 2020 refund. If you are one of the lucky ones whose income increases from 2019 to 2020 to put you above the eligibility for the credit, then you can assume you will need to pay a portion back.
That’s the word as of today, April 15. I am sure it will all be completely different in 24 hours.
In addition, I received this from my software company:
- Be alert for phone scams.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury Department, or any other government agency will not contact you by phone to collect information for stimulus payment processing. Period. - Be alert for phishing scams.
Government agencies will not email or text you to collect information for stimulus payment processing. Watch for suspicious emails or texts with links or attachments requesting information for processing stimulus deposits or checks. If you receive one, do not click the link or open the attachment. It’s a scam. Delete it. - Be alert for state-related scams.
State agencies will also not call, email or text you to collect information or a fee to process a stimulus payment. To date, no state has introduced their own version of a stimulus payment.
As of now, we are only aware of one communication a taxpayer will receive from the IRS. No later than 15 days after distributing a stimulus payment, the IRS is required to mail a notice to the taxpayer indicating the payment amount, whether the payment was mailed or deposited, and a phone number to call if the taxpayer did not receive the payment.
Please contact us if you encounter anything that seems illegitimate. We will always take the time to help you.