The IRS said checks should arrive in mailboxes in the "coming weeks."
March 22, 2021, 8:22 PM
• 5 min read
Share to FacebookShare to TwitterEmail this articleAnother batch of direct payments started processing Friday and should arrive in Americans' bank accounts or mailboxes soon, according to an IRS news release.
Payments should arrive as early as Wednesday for Americans receiving direct deposits. A large number of payments in this batch will be checks, which should arrive in mailboxes in the "coming weeks," the IRS said Monday.
The first 90 million payments, announced by the IRS last week, were disbursed to eligible Americans, but the news release Monday did not say how many payments are being processed in the second batch.
President Donald J. Trump's name is printed on a stimulus check issued by the IRS, April 23, 2020.
Some of the mailed payments will come on pre-paid debit cards while others will be sent as a check -- which will not feature the president's name, according to photos the IRS released. Checks sent out in 2020 as part of the CARES Act displayed former President Donald Trump's name and included a letter with his signature.
Sign outside IRS headquarters in Washington, D.C. on March 19, 2021.
The American Rescue Plan caps direct payments at an income of $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for couples, while the earlier direct payments were capped at an income of $99,000 for individuals and $198,000 for couples. Earlier direct payments outlined in the CARES Act used taxpayers' 2019 filings to determine eligibility.
Eligibility for the current wave of stimulus checks is based on 2020 tax returns, unless they haven't been filed yet. If that's the case, eligibility is based on a taxpayer's 2019 returns.
Anyone who received no payment or a smaller payment according to their 2019 wages but then became unemployed in 2020 will want to file their returns immediately. The IRS confirmed they will consider a comparison of a taxpayer's 2019 and 2020 returns and could eventually send a supplemental payment for the qualifying amount.
If an American qualified in 2019, received a payment, but no longer qualified in 2020 due to increased earnings, the IRS will take no action and that person may keep the check.
Stock photo of woman using her mobile phone.
IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, while testifying before Congress last week, implored anyone eligible to receive payments to file their taxes.
"In a nutshell, people need to file a 2020 return," Rettig said.
ABC News' Trish Turner contributed to this report.
