The U.S. Treasury has sent out about 68 percent of the second stimulus payments. But many are learning they must file a 2020 tax return to receive their $600 payment.
As the U.S. Treasury rushes to distribute second stimulus payments, many Americans learned this week that they will not receive the $600 until they file their 2020 tax return, a delay threatening additional hardship.
The Treasury has paid out about 68 percent of the payments so far, with millions of Americans receiving their $600 via direct deposit or a check in the mail. Yet, some Americans are still waiting to receive their money, and others will not receive any money until they file their 2020 tax return.
The IRS declined to say how many people are affected by the requirement to file a tax return before receiving a stimulus payment, but the National Consumer Law Center said it could be up to 20 million.
While the IRS is getting more of the money out faster than it did in 2020, the agency is facing mounting public criticism for delaying stimulus payments for some Americans until they file tax returns, especially as the economy continues to deteriorate amid the surging pandemic.
“The problem is this bill was passed right at the start of the 2020 tax season,” said John Koskinen, the IRS commissioner under President Barack Obama. “This has all hit when critical testing of the operations of the tax filing system are going on, and without delaying some checks, they can’t get it all done. But it’s not helpful to people waiting for money.”
The IRS is urging people to use the “Get My Payment” tool on the IRS website to check the status of their payment. If that tool returns a message that says “Payment Status #2 — Not Available,” then the person will not be receiving a payment via direct deposit or check in the mail, according to an IRS statement issued late Tuesday. – READ MORE
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