Run to the Mailbox Now: More Stimulus Checks are Being Sent Out

May 30, 2021 Topic: Stimulus Payment Bonus Blog Brand: The Reboot Tags: Stimulus PaymentPlus-Up PaymentUSPS

Run to the Mailbox Now: More Stimulus Checks are Being Sent Out

Take note that the latest ninth batch of checks included four hundred sixty thousand of these payments and some are still likely in transit if they were mailed off using USPS.

Here's What You Need to Remember: The May 17 Tax Day deadline may have already passed, but the agency has said that Americans can still get their hands on the missing payments. All they have to do is apply for an extension of time to file and complete all the forms by the October 15 tax-filing extension deadline.

The Internal Revenue Service has confirmed that a sizeable number of the most recent batches of coronavirus stimulus checks under President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan are the so-called “plus-up” or supplemental payments.

Take note that the latest ninth batch of checks included four hundred sixty thousand of these payments and some are still likely in transit if they were mailed off using USPS.

According to the IRS, these particular funds are “for people who earlier in March received payments based on their 2019 tax returns but are eligible for a new or larger payment based on their recently processed 2020 tax returns.”

For example, the agency continued, they “could include a situation where a person’s income dropped in 2020 compared to 2019, or a person had a new child or dependent on their 2020 tax return, and other situations.”

In all, the IRS already has made more than six million of these supplemental payments this year and has put many minds at ease by confirming that it will continue to automatically calculate and send out these bonus checks.

Keep in mind that another large portion of the recent batches went to recent tax filers who previously did not have the necessary information on file at the agency.

“Although payments are automatic for most people, the IRS continues to urge people who don’t normally file a tax return and haven’t received Economic Impact Payments to file a 2020 tax return to get all the benefits they’re entitled to under the law, including tax credits such as the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, the Child Tax Credit, and the Earned Income Tax Credit,” the IRS stated.

The May 17 Tax Day deadline may have already passed, but the agency has said that Americans can still get their hands on the missing payments. All they have to do is apply for an extension of time to file and complete all the forms by the October 15 tax-filing extension deadline. However, know that taxpayers are still responsible for interest and penalties that could continue to accrue on any tax owed.

Another government-issued check to be on the lookout for is from the tax refunds on 2020 unemployment benefits, and they are expected to start landing in eligible bank accounts beginning this month.

These potentially generous payments are also from Biden’s stimulus bill, which waived federal tax on up to $10,200 of unemployment benefits—or $20,400 for married couples filing jointly—that were collected last year.

The IRS recently announced that it will automatically adjust tax returns if individuals qualify for a refund.

“Because the change occurred after some people filed their taxes, the IRS will take steps in the spring and summer to make the appropriate change to their return, which may result in a refund. The first refunds are expected to be made in May and will continue into the summer,” the IRS said.

“Any resulting overpayment of tax will be either refunded or applied to other outstanding taxes owed,” it added.

Ethen Kim Lieser is a Minneapolis-based Science and Tech Editor who has held posts at Google, The Korea Herald, Lincoln Journal Star, AsianWeek, and Arirang TV. Follow or contact him on LinkedIn. This article first appeared earlier this year.

Image: Reuters.