Staying Fit
|Editor's note: The IRS is in the process of developing procedures for the issuance of stimulus payments to Americans, as called for under the CARES Act. These procedures are evolving, and the IRS has not yet worked out all of the details. AARP is monitoring the IRS closely and will provide the latest information on stimulus payments as soon as it becomes available.
The Internal Revenue Service launched a new online tool Friday that will let people who don't normally file a tax return register for their coronavirus economic stimulus checks.
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The new web tool should solve a problem that has plagued the effort to get stimulus payments to nearly all Americans as mandated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which passed in March. The checks and direct deposits can be as much as $1,200 per person, or $2,400 for those who file joint tax returns. Parents with children 16 and younger are eligible for $500 per child.
Many Americans will get their payments automatically based on information gleaned from their 2018 or 2019 tax returns, while others will get checks or direct deposits because they receive Social Security retirement or disability benefits or Railroad Retirement benefits. But that still left out many Americans who are eligible to get a check. The new tool, developed jointly by the IRS and the Free File Alliance — a group of tax software companies that work with the IRS to help Americans prepare and e-file their federal tax returns for free — aims to fix that.
"People who don't have a return filing obligation can use this tool to give us basic information so they can receive their Economic Impact Payments as soon as possible,” said a statement from IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “The IRS and Free File Alliance have been working around the clock to deliver this new tool to help people."
Using the tool won't result in owing more taxes, the IRS says. When you enter basic information, including your Social Security number, name, address and dependents, the IRS will use this information to confirm eligibility and calculate and send a stimulus payment. You can enter bank or financial information to get your check deposited directly into your account — a much faster option than getting a paper check in the mail.
