9 Reasons Why You Might Not Have Gotten Your Stimulus Check Yet
By Dave Basner May 22, 2020
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act assured eligible Americans a check for $1,200 to help them, and the economy, during the global pandemic. While millions of people havealready received theirs, many still haven't and are left wonderingwhere their stimulus check is. If you are one of them, there are many reasons why you might not havegotten your money yet, but here are the top nineaccording to CNET:
1. You aren't eligible for the payment
Toreceive the stimulus check, you have to either be a single US citizen with an adjusted gross income less than $75,000, the head of a household earning under $112,500, or have filed jointly and earn less than $150,000.
2. Your payment is coming later in the year
The IRS did say it could take up to 20 weeks for them to get all 150 million payments out. They've prioritized the distribution by sending checks to those with the lowest income first. If you just made the cut for eligibility because of your income, you might have to waita bit longer to get your money.
3. Your payment is coming through the mail
While many people signed up online to have their stimulus check submitted through direct deposit, those who didn't have now missedthe May 13th deadlineand will have to wait for a paper check or a debit card to come in the mail. The IRS will be sending those out later this month and in June.
4. Your check was already being processed when you submitted your bank info
If you held off on submitting your direct deposit information until close to the date it was due, you might still have been too late. The IRS started processing paper checks before that point and if yours was one of them, you'll be getting a check mailed to you instead of deposited in your bank. That could take two weeks.
5. The banking information the IRS has for you is wrong
If you didn't go online to sign up for direct deposit, the IRS looked at your 2018 or 2019 tax returns for banking information. If they found it, they used that for direct deposit. However, some tax preparers set up temporary accounts for the IRS to send their clients' returns, like a prepaid debit card. In cases like that or if the bank info is out of date or invalid for another reason, the payment will get returned to the IRS and reprocessed, but that might take some time.
6. Your bank had trouble with the direct deposit
Even if the IRS had the correct bank information, sometimes the bank itself has difficulty processing it. If that happens, the payment gets returned to the IRS and Uncle Sam will then mail a check to the most current address on file, which typically comes from your 2019 tax return.
7. You owe child support
If the IRS finds out that you are behind on child support payments, they will either not send you a check or send you one for a reduced amount. In that case, you will also receive a notice from the Bureau of the Fiscal Service.
8. A dependent you claimed is not eligible for a payment
Parents who do not file jointly and are not married can't both claim a qualifying child as a dependent. The parent who claimed the child on their 2019 tax return is the only one who can receive a payment for the dependent. Also, if the dependent child is in college, they do not qualify for the payment.
9. You need to submit a non-filers form
Anyone who is low income and didn't need to file a tax return in 2018 or 2019 might have to file a non-filers form so the IRS is aware. If that applies to you, headhereto do it.
If you still haven't gotten your stimulus check, you can always head to the IRS'Get My Payment sitefor updates on the status of yours.
Photo: Getty Images