$1,400 Up for Grabs: Here’s Who Qualifies (And How to Get It Now)

Alright let s talk about that stimulus check the one that went out a while back during COVID You might be wondering Did I miss it Can I still get mine If so you re not alone A lot of people are still trying to figure this out So here s the real deal no fluff First Off What Was This Check Back in the establishment rolled out the third round of stimulus payments you maybe heard it called the check It was part of a big relief package called the American Rescue Plan aimed at helping folks deal with all the financial stress caused by the pandemic Here s how it worked If you were single and made under you got the full If you were married and made under you got that s each And for every dependent kids elderly parents even adult kids in college you got another per person Sounds great right But here s the thing not everyone got it And selected people didn t get the full amount they were certainly owed So Can You Still Get It Short answer Maybe It depends on your situation If you didn t get the payment or if you got less than you should ve you might still be able to claim it But there s a catch you ll need to file your tax return even if you don t usually file taxes When you file there s this thing called the Recovery Rebate Credit that s how the IRS figures out what you missed and sends it your way What Should You Do Let s break it down nice and simple Didn t get the check You might still be eligible File your taxes if you haven t already Think you got too little Same thing file your taxes and claim the Recovery Rebate Credit Not sure what to do Use the IRS Get My Payment tool online to see what they sent or didn t send you Never filed You re not out of time yet You can still file a late tax return The IRS usually gives people up to three years to claim a refund So you ve got until April But I Don t Usually File Taxes Totally get that Maybe your income was low or you re on Social Safeguard or you just didn t think you needed to But if you didn t file taxes in and never got that you ll need to file a simple return to claim it You can even do it online through services like the IRS Free File tool It s not as painful as it sounds and it could mean free money in your pocket What If You Already Filed and Still Didn t Get It If you filed your taxes and still didn t get anything here are a limited things you can do Check your mail or bank account sometimes it came as a check or prepaid debit card Look for IRS letters they sent notices about the payment like Letter which explains what you got If nothing adds up you can file an amended return or call the IRS to sort things out If you never got your stimulus check or think you got shorted you ve still got a chance to get it The key is File your taxes if you haven t already Claim the Recovery Rebate Credit And don t wait too long because the window to claim it closes in April It might feel like it s been forever since those checks went out but if you re owed that money it s still worth going after And honestly who wouldn t want an extra right now