Who Gets Stimulus Payments and How to Check Your Status

Stimulus payments go to people who filed a tax return or received certain benefits, but the rules changed with each round of payments

Stimulus payments—also called economic impact payments or recovery rebates—were one-time checks sent by the U.S. Treasury during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most people received them automatically if they had filed a recent tax return or were already getting Social Security, SSI, or Veterans benefits. The amount you received and whether you got one at all depended on your income, filing status, and which round of payments it was. There is no single rule that covers all three rounds: the may be able to access thresholds and payment amounts shifted each time.

If you think you should have received a payment but did not, or if you received one and want to understand why the amount was what it was, you can check your payment status through the IRS. The IRS also has a tool to help people who did not file taxes in recent years figure out whether they should have received a payment and how to claim it on a tax return.

Key Takeaways

• The IRS sent three rounds of stimulus payments between 2020 and 2021, with different income limits and payment amounts for each round.
• You received a payment automatically if you filed a 2019 or 2020 tax return, got Social Security, SSI, or Veterans benefits, or were claimed as a dependent on someone else's return.
• The IRS has a free tool called the Economic Impact Payment Status tracker where you can see whether you received each payment and the amount.
• If you did not file taxes and did not receive a payment, you may still be able to claim it by filing a 2020 or 2021 tax return, depending on which round you missed.
• Payments were reduced or eliminated for people above certain income thresholds, which varied by filing status and number of dependents.

The three rounds of stimulus payments and their income limits

The first stimulus payment was sent in spring 2020. It was $1,200 per adult and $500 per child under 17. The second round went out in December 2020 and January 2021, with $600 per adult and $600 per child. The third round was sent starting in March 2021 and was $1,400 per adult and $1,400 per child.

Income limits determined whether you received the full amount, a reduced amount, or nothing. For the first payment, the full amount went to single filers with income under $75,000, heads of household under $112,500, and married couples filing jointly under $150,000. The second and third payments had higher income thresholds: single filers under $87,000 for the second payment and under $80,000 for the third. The income limits were based on your most recent tax return or, if you had not filed, on information from Social Security or the Veterans Administration.

Who automatically received stimulus payments

You received a payment automatically if you filed a federal income tax return for 2019 or 2020, even if you owed no tax or got a refund. The IRS used the address on your return to mail the check or deposit it directly to your bank account if you had provided banking information on your return.

You also received a payment if you were getting Social Security retirement, disability (SSDI), or survivor benefits; Supplemental Security Income (SSI); or Veterans benefits. The IRS worked with those agencies to send payments to people on their rolls, even if those people had not filed a recent tax return.

If you were claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return—usually a parent or guardian—you did not receive a payment yourself. Instead, the person who claimed you received an extra $500 per dependent (for the first payment) or $600 per dependent (for the second and third payments).

How to check whether you received a payment and the amount

The IRS provides a free tool called the Economic Impact Payment Status tracker on its website at irs.gov. You can use it to see the status of each of the three payments: whether you received it, the amount, and how it was sent (check, direct deposit, or debit card).

To use the tracker, you will need your Social Security number, date of birth, and street address. The tool will show you the payment date and method for each round. If the tracker says you did not receive a payment but you believe you should have, you have options depending on which round it was and your current situation.

The tracker is updated regularly, but it can take several weeks after a payment is sent for the information to appear. If you recently moved, the payment may have been mailed to an old address. You can file a change of address with the U.S. Postal Service to have mail forwarded, or you can contact the IRS directly if you believe a check was lost.

What to do if you did not receive a payment you think you were owed

If the tracker shows you did not receive a payment, the next step depends on which round it was. For the first two payments (2020 and early 2021), you can claim the money by filing a 2020 tax return and using the Recovery Rebate Credit. For the third payment (2021), you can claim it on your 2021 tax return using the same credit.

The Recovery Rebate Credit is a line on the tax form that lets you claim any stimulus payment you did not receive. You do not need to have earned income to claim it. If you did not file taxes in those years because your income was too low, you can still file a return just to claim the credit. The IRS will not charge you a fee to file, and you may get a refund if the credit is larger than any tax you owe.

If you did not file a tax return for 2020 or 2021 and want to claim a stimulus payment you missed, you can file a return now. The deadline to claim the credit on your 2020 return was April 15, 2021, but you can still file a late return and claim it. For the 2021 payment, you can claim it on your 2021 return, which you can file at any time.

Reduced or eliminated payments based on income

If your income was above the threshold for your filing status, your payment was reduced. The reduction was $5 for every $100 of income above the threshold (or any part of $100). For example, if you were a single filer in 2020 and earned $80,000, you were $5,000 above the $75,000 threshold for the first payment. Your payment would have been reduced by $250 (5,000 ÷ 100 × $5), so you would have received $950 instead of $1,200.

If your income was far enough above the threshold, your payment was reduced to zero. For the first payment, single filers with income over $99,000 received nothing. For the second payment, the cutoff was $99,000. For the third payment, it was $87,000. These amounts are higher for heads of household and married couples filing jointly.

The income used to calculate your payment was the income on your most recent tax return. If your income dropped significantly in 2020 or 2021, you may have been may have access to to a larger payment than what you received. In that case, you can claim the difference using the Recovery Rebate Credit when you file your tax return for that year.

Dependents and stimulus payments

Dependents did not receive their own payments. Instead, the person who claimed them on a tax return received an additional amount per dependent. For the first payment, that was $500 per child under 17. For the second and third payments, it was $600 per child.

If a child was born in 2020 or 2021, you could claim them as a dependent on your tax return for that year and receive the dependent amount for that round of payments. For example, if your child was born in 2020, you could claim them on your 2020 tax return and receive $600 per child for the second and third payments (which were based on 2020 income). You would claim the dependent amount using the Recovery Rebate Credit when you filed your return.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get a stimulus payment if I did not file taxes?

Yes. If you did not file a tax return but had income below the threshold, you can file a return now and claim the payment using the Recovery Rebate Credit. You can file for prior years even if the original deadline has passed. The IRS also sent payments automatically to people receiving Social Security, SSI, or Veterans benefits, even if they had not filed a return.

What if I received a stimulus payment but I think the amount was wrong?

Use the IRS Economic Impact Payment Status tracker to confirm the amount you received. If it was less than you think you were owed, you can claim the difference on your tax return for that year using the Recovery Rebate Credit. You will need to show your income and filing status to calculate what you should have received.

Do I have to pay back a stimulus payment?

No. Stimulus payments were not loans and do not need to be repaid. They are not counted as income for tax purposes. If you received a payment by mistake—for example, if you were claimed as a dependent and also received a payment yourself—you should contact the IRS, but you will not face penalties for keeping a payment you were not supposed to receive.

What if I moved and my check was sent to an old address?

File a change of address with the U.S. Postal Service to have mail forwarded. If the check was lost or never arrived, you can claim the payment on your tax return using the Recovery Rebate Credit. Keep any documentation showing your old address and when you moved, in case the IRS asks questions.

Can I claim a stimulus payment if I am claimed as a dependent by someone else?

No. If you are claimed as a dependent on someone else's return, you cannot receive a stimulus payment yourself. The person who claims you receives the dependent amount instead. If you believe you should not be claimed as a dependent, you can file your own return, but the IRS will need to resolve the conflict with the other filer.