The ins and outs of the final stimulus check change day by day as lawmakers inch closer to a complete package. We break down everything you need to know.
The terms and conditions for the $1,400 stimulus check continue to change as lawmakers and top US leaders test the waters over what new rules for a “targeted” stimulus payment should be, and how they could limit who receives the money. On Monday, Democrats floated a brand new proposal to tweak the stimulus check equation and keep the highest earners from getting a payment while still delivering lower- and middle-income households with a full or sizable portion of the $1,400 maximum per person (more below).
The push and pull over income limits is just the beginning of the stimulus check tangle. Other qualifications under consideration as part of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package would make more groups of people eligible to receive a new check, or dramatically increase how much they get, even as some families would receive a smaller stimulus check this time or be left out entirely. (Calculate your total here). And there’s the question of how soon the third stimulus check could arrive, and if Democrats will succeed in speeding up the timeline with a political maneuver that could bypass Republican opposition and pass the bill.
Meanwhile, we have guidance for people who didn’t get all or part of the first two payments, what would happen if the third check were to arrive in the middle of tax season — would it affect your tax refunds and returns? — and how you can set yourself up to potentially get the next check faster. This story was updated with new information.
What’s the latest ‘targeted’ stimulus check proposal?
As the days go on, Democrats — who control the White House and Congress (by a thin majority) — are slowly settling on a collective vision of the third stimulus check. It will have a $1,400 per person maximum, according to the latest reports, and it will be “targeted” so that Americans with the highest incomes won’t get a full or partial check.
“We need to target that money. So, folks making $300,000 don’t get any windfall,” Biden said Feb. 5.
The latest proposal would draw a line in the sand to exclude individual taxpayers with an AGI of $100,000 a year and couples earning $200,000, according to The Washington Post. Note, that’s without dependents. The way the current math works out, a $1,400 flat rate per qualified dependent, or any other amount, could actually give people a partial check even if they otherwise exceed the income limit — it’s complicated.
A targeted check that leaves out individuals making $100,000 isn’t too far off from the current stimulus check formula. Our stimulus calculator for the third check shows how a person who earns $102,900 a year could still get a partial payment of $5, for example.
Would a third stimulus check draw from 2019 or 2020 taxes?
The confluence of tax season with a third stimulus check is a huge part of the conversation. We’ll explore in more detail below, but for now we want to point out that the most recent Democratic proposal would determine your total based on income from either your 2020 or 2019 tax returns, according to the Washington Post report.
For example, if you qualify for the full $1,400 based on your 2020 taxes, but not your 2019 taxes, the proposal would make up the difference at a later date, even if the IRS couldn’t process it for several months, the Post suggested.
The new stimulus check could be approved sooner than initially expected
The COVID-19 stimulus bill could clear the House of Representatives in two weeks and go to the Senate before the end of February, if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats have their way. If their plan to use a powerful political tool works, a third stimulus check could conceivably arrive in early March for the first wave of recipients. But whenever the bill does pass (assuming that happens), it doesn’t mean everyone would get their funds immediately.
There are many variables that could affect you personally. For example, the 2020 tax season could have a dramatic effect on how and when you get your next payment — we’ll just have to see how it all pans out. Meanwhile, we’ve mapped out some dates the IRS and Treasury could start sending the next stimulus check, depending on who you are.
Would the IRS process the third payment quickly, and what about a deadline?
The IRS and the Department of the Treasury set a blistering pace to deliver the second stimulus checks, starting within days of former President Donald Trump signing December’s stimulus bill. They had no choice. The language of the bill provided only a 17-day window to send the checks. There were millions of direct deposit errors, and now anyone missing stimulus money will have to claim it as part of filing 2020 taxes. (Yes, even people who don’t otherwise file taxes.)
It’s too soon to say if the IRS would automatically send a third check to recipients as it has done with the second stimulus checks, or if the money would be wrapped up into a Recovery Rebate Credit or something like it. We walk through more possible scenarios for the third stimulus check timeline here.
Is there anything you can do to get your third check faster?
Possibly. Your stimulus check and taxes are tightly intertwined. There are some important things to know about how your taxes can affect whether you’d qualify or not, depending on both the eligibility rules and your 2020 adjusted gross income. But taxes are now also tied to any missing stimulus money you might have to claim or trace.
If you file your taxes sooner, you can get a refund (plus missing stimulus money) faster than if you, for example, file a tax extension. We also recommend setting up direct deposit with the IRS to get a catch-up payment faster — and potentially get a new stimulus check faster, too. And if you moved recently, better let the IRS and USPS know.
Which other stimulus check qualifications could change with the next payment?
Besides possibly lowering the income cap to qualify, Biden has proposed two changes that have been popular among Democratic lawmakers. The first would expand qualifications to dependents of any age, including 13.5 million more people, according to the People’s Policy Project. That includes college students, older adult relatives and dependents of all ages with disabilities (not just those under 17 years old).
The second change to eligibility would include all “mixed-status households” with one or more family members who aren’t US citizens. An example would be parents who aren’t US citizens, but their US-born children are. The second stimulus checks made families with one US-citizen spouse eligible.
This is how some could get more money next time, even with a targeted check
A larger maximum total per person is an obvious way your household would see more money from a third check over the second, but there’s more to it than that. Since the upper limit for the second check was $600 per adult, with an extra $600 per child dependent (according to the IRS’ formula), more people hit the upper income limit for receiving a second payment. And that means they didn’t actually qualify to get any stimulus money at all.
A third stimulus check could make more groups of people eligible to receive money (namely noncitizens who pay taxes), and bring a larger total check to qualified individuals and their families, including possible $1,400 payments to dependents. A change to your circumstances might also mean you qualify for more money this time. Here are other ways a third stimulus check could put more money in your pocket.
Some people might get a lot less stimulus check money
A targeted income limit is only one way a household could get less stimulus check money than the total, whatever it winds up being. We explore that here, including ways that changes in your personal life could have an effect, like if you got a raise in the past year, or if you claim fewer dependents this time around.
For more information about stimulus checks, here’s other funding that could be in the next stimulus package, how to estimate your third stimulus check and everything your stimulus check has to do with taxes (and the other way around).
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