UPDATED 5/22/2020–Where’s My Stimulus Payment??

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Most Recent Update – 5/22/2020

The IRS has announced that some stimulus payments may be sent on a prepaid debit card known as The Economic Impact Payment Card instead of paper checks.

If you receive an Economic Impact Payment Card, it will arrive in a plain envelope from “Money Network Cardholder Services.” The Visa name will appear on the front of the Card; the back of the Card has the name of the issuing bank, MetaBank®, N.A.

The IRS began distributing economic stimulus payments in April via direct deposit to taxpayers who had up-to-date information on file. It followed up with payments by paper check starting in mid-May. However, the agency estimated it might take as long as four to five months to mail out the millions of remaining checks. Now it says that sending four million prepaid debit cards will cut down on the time.

Some are viewing the use of the EIP cards as a test for future stimulus payments, if any are forthcoming. If all goes well, this might be a simpler and faster approach to distributing money to taxpayers.

Additional Updates

  • The IRS website was improved recently and is reportedly functioning better.
  • If you get the “payment status is unavailable” message, try again the next day. (It is being updated every 24 hours.)
  • Whether or not you’ve filed 2019 does not affect the “payment status is unavailable” message.
    • We have seen instances with clients, both filed and not filed for 2019, who have gotten the results and non-results message.
  • Taxpayer name and address must EXACTLY match your last tax return filing, including abbreviations for St vs Street, etc.
  • We recommend using all caps. It has actually changed the response for some.

UPDATE

The IRS started the process of sending stimulus monies via direct deposit. It is not immediate and not everyone will get their electronic deposit at the same time. Our KuberneoCPA team has no insights nor ability to see the IRS processing system, but the IRS has created a system for you to check on it, which you can find here.

Don’t be dismayed if the system says “Payment Status Not Available.” There are a number of reasons that may happen and does not necessarily mean you will not get a payment.

Unfortunately, the IRS system is not without problems. When utilizing that system, many taxpayers are getting the response: your information cannot be found. That response does NOT necessarily mean you don’t have a payment in process. If you have not received a direct deposit and want to check on it, we recommend checking the site once each day. (It is only updated once every 24 hours–overnight–so there’s no need to check back more frequently.)

In certain cases, however, the Get My Payment app will be unable to tell you the status of your payment. You may receive this message for one of the following reasons:

  • If you are not eligible for a payment (see IRS.gov on who is eligible and who is not eligible)
  • If you are required to file a tax return and have not filed in tax year 2018 or 2019.
  • If you recently filed your return or provided information through Non-Filers: Enter Your Payment Info on IRS.gov. Your payment status will be updated when processing is completed.
  • If you are a SSA or RRB Form 1099 recipient, SSI or VA benefit recipient – the IRS is working with your agency to issue your payment; your information is not available in this app yet.

Finally, the IRS will mail paper checks on or around April 30th, and letters with specific details about your payment.

Today’s biggest FAQ: Where’s my stimulus payment?

Well, we have some good news…

Stimulus payments are now in process!

You can track the status of your payment or enter your direct deposit information directly on this page on the IRS website.

If you want to know more about the program, including how much you may be eligible to receive, you can find that information on this page.

Have other questions? Read more FAQs about the COVID-19 crisis. If you don’t find what you’re looking for, ask us!