Haven't received the last stimulus check? There is still time to claim it

Carmen Reinicke -

If you haven't received your last stimulus check, don't despair.

There is still time to claim the money if you are eligible.

The government doled out a third round of stimulus payments as part of the $1.9 trillion American Bailout Plan, signed into law in March 2021. Starting that month, millions of Americans and their dependent children received up to $1,400 each. .

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Through July, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) had sent more than $171 million in payments to Americans totaling $400 billion.

The IRS had until December 31 to complete mailing the checks to eligible payees.

If you still haven't received your payment, or received less than your share, you can claim the money on your 2021 tax return using the Recovery Refund Credit.

“If you qualify, you will need to file a 2021 tax return, even if you don't usually file one,” the IRS said in a statement.

Bet on your claim

If you think you're eligible to claim the Recovery Refund Credit, you'll need to list the stimulus money received this year, if any, and the amount that should have been sent to you.

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To help with this calculation, the agency will send a notice, letter 6475, to people who received economic impact payments in 2021. The document will include a record of the money sent, as well as a notice of additional payments that must be made to eligible beneficiaries.

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This information will be needed to determine the amount of money they will receive using the IRS Form 1040, Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet, or an

online tax

Since eligibility for 2021 stimulus checks was determined using 2020 or 2019 tax returns, you could get more money if you suffered a drop in income and didn't receive the full amount you were owed.

The additional funds will be applied to taxes due, reducing your bill, or returned on your refund.

If you have had a child in 2021, you can also claim your stimulus check using the Recovery Refund Credit.

You can also claim the full child tax credit if you weren't receiving the monthly advances that started in July.

Who is eligible for help?

The income amounts to receive a stimulus payment changed in 2021.

For the last stimulus check, the full amount went to those with $75,000 adjusted gross income or $150,000 for married couples filing jointly.

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If you earned more than that in 2021, you could still claim some of the money if your income was less than $80,000 or $160,000 if you're married filing jointly.

Of course, some people got their stimulus money based on a 2020 return and then made more in 2021. Even if you made more than the phase-out amounts in 2021, you won't have to pay back the money you received.

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