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May 7, 2008
Q. When will I get my payment?
A. Payments are going out now
for those returns processed by April 15 and will
continue on a weekly schedule through mid-July. See the
payment schedule
for both direct deposit and paper checks for further
information. Payments will continue through 2008 for
returns filed after April 15.
Q. I filed after April 15 and
the payment date for my Social Security number has
passed. How long will it take for me to get my stimulus
payment?
A. It will generally take a minimum of
six weeks after you file your return to get your
stimulus payment.
Q. I filed my return on time,
but I haven’t received my stimulus payment, even though
the payment date listed for my Social Security number
has passed. Why?
A. In general, the payment schedule
only applies if your return was received and the IRS
finished processing it before April 15. If you filed
your return on time, but close to the April 15 deadline,
the IRS may not have finished processing it before April
15.
Processing times for tax returns and stimulus payments
vary. If you are getting a regular income-tax refund,
the IRS will send you that refund first. Normally, your
stimulus payment will follow one to two weeks later.
If you are not expecting a regular tax
refund, your stimulus payment generally should arrive a
minimum of six weeks after you file.
Also, if you chose direct deposit and
requested a Refund Anticipation Loan (RAL) or had your
refund deposited into more than one account, you will
receive a paper check based on the distribution schedule
for paper checks.
Q. I chose direct deposit for
my 2007 tax refund but also requested a refund
anticipation loan (RAL) from my preparer. How does that
affect my stimulus payment?
A. Taxpayers who use Refund
Anticipation Loans (RALs) or enter into any other loans
or financial agreements with a tax professional, such as
agreeing to have return preparation fees deducted from
their refunds, cannot receive their stimulus payments by
direct deposit and instead will get paper checks based
on the paper check distribution schedule.
Q. Will the IRS allow me to
provide it with direct deposit information, if I didn’t
include that information on my original tax return?
A. You cannot correct direct deposit
information or request a direct deposit after a return
has been filed.
Q. Is there something I can do
to prevent my stimulus payment from being automatically
deposited into the account that I identified for the
direct deposit of my regular refund?
A. Generally, if you designated direct
deposit on a tax return, the stimulus payment will go to
the account number you designated. If the account number
is no longer active, the IRS will send you a paper
check. This process may take several weeks.
Q. I received my stimulus
payment, but it was less than what my friends and
neighbors received. Why?
A. Your economic stimulus payment is
based on information provided on your 2007 income tax
return.
Many but not all taxpayers qualify for
the maximum basic payment of $600 for singles or $1,200
for married couples. Many parents are also receiving an
additional $300 for each qualifying child, born after
Dec. 31, 1990.
Your payment may be less than the
maximum for one or more of the following reasons:
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You are single and your net income tax liability
is less than $600. If you file Form 1040 net
income tax liability is the amount shown on Line
57, plus the amount on Line 52.
-
You are married and your net income tax
liability is less than $1,200.
-
You are single and your adjusted gross income
(AGI) is more than $75,000. On Form 1040, AGI is
the amount on Line 37.
-
You are married filing a joint return and your
AGI is more than $150,000.
-
You owe back taxes that reduced your payment.
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You have non-tax federal debts such as unpaid
student loans or child-support obligations that
reduced your payment.
Around the time you receive your
payment, you will also receive a notice from the IRS
explaining how your payment was calculated. It is
important to keep this notice as a record of your
economic stimulus payment. In addition, you’ll get a
separate notice if you owe back taxes or non-tax debts
that were offset or deducted from your stimulus payment.
The
Economic Stimulus Payments FAQs
section of this Web site has further details on how
these payments are figured.
Q. The notice I received shows
I should have gotten more than the government actually
deposited into my bank account. What happened?
A. It could be that the amount
deposited into your bank account was what remained of
your stimulus payment after it was reduced, or offset to
collect back taxes or other debts such as a student loan
or child support. If this is the case, you will receive
a separate notice about two weeks after you receive your
stimulus payment and notice.
Q. I have moved since filing
my 2007 tax return. How will my payment reach me?
A. You should file a
Form 8822
with the IRS and a change of address notice with the
U.S. Postal Service. This will ensure your check is sent
to your new address. Without your current address, the
check could be returned to the IRS as undeliverable.
Q. I chose direct deposit for
my 2007 tax refund but also requested my electronic
filing and/or tax preparation fees be deducted from my
refund. Does that affect my stimulus payment?
A. If you requested that your
electronic filing or tax preparation fee be deducted
from the amount of your refund, you have entered into a
financial agreement with the tax preparation provider or
e-file software company for a refund anticipated check
(RAC). Both Refund Anticipation Checks (RACs) and Refund
Anticipation Loans (RALs) are bank products. The money
that is deposited into your bank account comes from the
financial institution associated with your electronic
filing software provider or tax preparation provider,
not directly from the IRS. Taxpayers who use RALs, RACs
or enter into similar loans or financial agreements with
their tax professional or tax software companies will
not receive their economic stimulus payments by direct
deposit. Instead they will get a paper check that will
be issued according to the schedule that has been
published for paper check distribution.
Q. I chose to have my tax
refund deposited onto a "stored value card" or debit
card through the professional tax preparer I used. Will
my stimulus payment be directly deposited onto that same
stored value card or debit card account?
A. Yes, unless you requested a refund
anticipation loan (RAL) through your tax professional or
the stored value card or debit card account has been
closed, in which case you will receive your economic
stimulus payment by paper check. Because the IRS must
wait until the money is returned, this process may take
several weeks.
Q. I received a stimulus
payment and I want to verify that it is correct. How do
I figure the payment, myself?
A. The easiest way to figure the
amount is to use the
Economic Stimulus Payment
Calculator on the
IRS.gov Web site. Essentially, there are two parts to
the stimulus payment: a basic amount based on tax
liability, filing status or other qualifying income, if
there is no tax liability, and an additional amount
based on whether a qualifying child is reported on the
return.
Basic Amount of Payment: If you had a
net income tax liability for 2007, you will generally
receive a payment, unless you can be claimed as a
dependent on someone else’s return, had higher income or
do not have a valid Social Security number.
Your net income tax liability is one
of the following:
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On Form 1040, the amount shown on Line 57 plus
the amount on Line 52;
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On Form 1040A, the amount shown on Line 35 plus
the amount on Line 32; or
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On Form 1040EZ, the amount on Line 10.
NOTE: Net income tax liability is not
the same as the amount of tax withheld from your pay,
the amount of your refund or the balance due on your
return.
Your stimulus payment is equal to your
net income tax liability, but no more than $600, if you
are single, or $1,200, if you are married filing a joint
return.
If you had no net income tax liability
for 2007, you are usually getting a minimum payment of
$300, if you are single, or $600, if you are married
filing jointly, as long as you had qualifying income of
at least $3,000 in 2007. To figure your qualifying
income, add together the following amounts:
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Wages that are reported on Form W-2;
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Net self-employment income that is taken into
account in computing taxable income;
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Social Security benefits reported in box 5 of
the 2007 Form SSA-1099 you received in January
2008. If you don’t have this form, you can
estimate your annual benefit by multiplying your
monthly benefit by the number of months (usually
12) you received benefits during 2007;
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Certain Railroad Retirement benefits reported in
box 5 of the 2007 Form RRB-1099 you received in
January 2008;
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Veterans’ benefits received in 2007, including
veterans’ disability compensation and disability
pension or survivors’ benefits received from the
Department of Veterans Affairs. You can estimate
your annual benefit by multiplying your monthly
benefit by the number of months during 2007 you
received benefits;
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Nontaxable combat pay if you chose to include it
as earned income on your 2007 return.
Note: Supplemental Security Income
(SSI) is not considered qualifying income and is not
included for the purpose of establishing eligibility for
the stimulus payment.
Additional Amounts for Qualifying Child: If you qualify
for the basic amount, you may receive an additional $300
for each qualifying child. To qualify, a child must be
younger than age 17 and have a valid Social Security
number.
Phase Out: Your payment is reduced, or
you may receive no payment at all based on your income
level. The stimulus payment begins to phase out for
individuals with adjusted gross incomes (AGI) over
$75,000 and married couples who file a joint return with
AGI over $150,000. The combined payment is reduced by 5
percent of the income above the AGI thresholds. Your AGI
is the amount shown on:
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Form 1040, Line 37
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Form 1040A, Line 21, or
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Form 1040EZ, Line 4
Q: I normally don't need to
file a tax return. How do I know if I'm one of those
people who may be eligible to receive an economic
stimulus payment?
A: This group includes some recipients
of Social Security, Railroad Retirement or veterans'
benefits as well as taxpayers who do not make enough
money to normally have to file a 2007 tax return. For
example, this can include low-income workers, those who
receive Social Security benefits or those who receive
veterans’ disability compensation, pension or survivors’
benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. These
people will be eligible to receive a payment of $300
($600 on a joint return), if they had at least $3,000 of
qualifying income.
Qualifying income includes Social
Security benefits, certain Railroad Retirement benefits,
certain veterans’ benefits and earned income, such as
income from wages, salaries, tips and self-employment.
For people filing joint tax returns, only a total of
$3,000 of qualifying income from both spouses is
required to be eligible for a payment.
Want more?
See the full set of
economic stimulus frequently asked
questions
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