To claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate, you must file a 2020 Form 1040 or 1040-SR, even if not required to file, and claim the credit on line 30. The deadline to file a 2020 return to claim this credit was May 17, 2024. If you missed this deadline, the opportunity to claim the 2020 credit has likely passed.
Filing deadlines if you haven't yet filed a tax return
To claim the: 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, file a tax return by May 17, 2024. 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit, file a tax return by April 15, 2025.
You can claim the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit for your qualifying dependent by filing a 2021 tax return. If you file electronically, the tax preparation software will help you figure your 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit.
Historical content – the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit
The deadline to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit for the first and second stimulus checks was May 17, 2024. While you can no longer claim these payments, below describes who may have needed to file to get these stimulus checks.
You will record the amount you received in stimulus funds, if any, on Form 1040 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Line 30. If you received the full amount you qualified for, no further action will be taken.
If you're completing your tax return on your own, the credit can be claimed on line 30 of Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR. Instructions for completing this line are included in Form 1040's instructions. In particular, look for the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet - Line 30 to calculate your potential credit amount.
Securely access your IRS online account to view the total of your first, second and third Economic Impact Payment amounts under the Tax Records page. You can no longer use the Get My Payment application to check your payment status.
Didn't get the full first and second payments? Claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit. You may be eligible to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit by filing a 2020 tax return. For the latest updates, check IRS.gov/coronavirus.
To check if you're owed a past stimulus payment, use the IRS.gov website to access your online account and view payment records, or if you missed a payment, see if you're eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 or 2021 tax return, as the "Get My Payment" tool is no longer active for checking status, but the IRS has issued all primary payments.
Yes, if you didn't file taxes, you could still be eligible for stimulus payments (Economic Impact Payments) by claiming them as the Recovery Rebate Credit (RRC) on a 2020 or 2021 tax return, even if you weren't otherwise required to file, using the IRS Free File program or a VITA site to file a return to get your missing stimulus funds. The IRS sent initial payments based on prior year returns, but you needed to file a tax return for the specific year (2020 or 2021) to claim any missed amounts or payments for dependents, notes the IRS.
Yes, it is too late to claim any COVID-19 stimulus money, as the final deadline to claim the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit (the third stimulus payment) passed on April 15, 2025, and earlier deadlines for the first two payments also expired. The IRS only allows a three-year window to file for refunds and credits, meaning you can no longer claim these missed payments by filing old tax returns.
Generally, you are eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit if:
A million tax filers got letters from the IRS in December indicating they had money coming to them because they were eligible to receive the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit but didn't claim it on their 2021 federal tax return. Those checks were sent out by late January, the IRS says.
You can't get a credit or refund if you don't file the claim within 3 years of filing your original return, or 2 years after paying the tax, whichever is later, unless you meet an exception that allows you more time to file a claim.
After the three-year refund window closes, the funds expire and cannot be issued. If you filed on time but didn't receive the credit, the IRS issued some automatic corrections in late 2024 and early 2025. If you still haven't received anything, it generally means you were either ineligible or your claim was denied.
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act, which includes a third round of stimulus checks. The payments are an advance of a temporary credit for 2021 (which you file taxes for in 2022). The payment is worth up to $1,400 for each eligible adult and each qualifying dependent in a household.
If you haven't claimed the third economic impact payment yet, now is your time to do so. April 15, 2025, will be the last opportunity to claim the third payment.
No, the IRS is not currently sending out new $1400 stimulus checks in 2026, but they did wrap up sending out final automatic payments for unclaimed 2021 Recovery Rebate Credits in late 2024/early 2025, with the deadline to claim these missed payments passing on April 15, 2025; new checks would require new Congressional action, and any texts about current stimulus payments are scams, say FOX 5 DC, CNBC, and IRS.gov.
You can claim the stimulus payments as a tax credit and get the money as part of your tax refund. The stimulus checks are a federal tax credit, known as the Recovery Rebate Credit. In order to get the Recovery Rebate Credit, you will need to file a tax return.
Normally, a taxpayer will qualify for the full amount of Economic Impact Payment if they have AGI of up to $75,000 for singles and married persons filing a separate return, up to $112,500 for heads of household, and up to $150,000 for married couples filing joint returns and surviving spouses.
Stimulus checks – The period to claim unpaid Economic Impact Payments has ended. In December 2024, the IRS sent payments to people who didn't receive them or claim the Recovery Rebate credit by April 2025. Read about the IRS' payments of the recovery rebate credit.
The stimulus payments were only disbursed for tax year 2020 and 2021. If you did not receive the stimulus payments from those tax years it is no to late to apply as the eligibility ended after April 15, 2025.
Single adults who reported a 2019 tax return with an adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less are eligible to receive $600. Married couples who filed jointly with an adjusted gross income of up to $150,000 will qualify to receive $1,200. Families with children under 17 will receive an additional $600 for each child.
Some of you may have received a $1,200 payment in April 2020 either in the form of a paper check or a direct deposit into your bank account. A second round of $600 payments is going out in late December 2020/early January 2021. The IRS sends these payments to anyone who filed a resident tax return for 2018 and/or 2019.