AMERICANS could get their $1,400 stimulus checks in weeks as Democrats advance their $1.9trillion economic rescue package.
Here are the key dates and the eligibility factors to get your payment.
Stimulus checks could be sent starting from the end of MarchCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Initial deadline at the end of February
During a CNN Town Hall in Milwaukee on Tuesday, President Joe Biden said he would not bow to pressure from critics who say his Covid relief package is too expensive.
The package features a wide variety of benefits including $400 a week in extra unemployment benefits, as well as a third stimulus check of up to $1,400.
The aid is expected to help alleviate immediate financial pressures for struggling households.
In Washington, the House Budget Committee this week put together a final bill for the full House to vote on next week.
Democratic leaders want the vote to occur on Friday, February 26.
The president said that now was the time ‘to go big with spending’Credit: AFP or licensors
When are you likely to get another stimulus check?
Once the House votes on the bill, it will go to the Senate.
There are 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans in the Senate along with Vice President Kamala Harris.
However, the Democrats cannot afford to lose one vote in the Senate due to the equal representation from both parties.
The bill could be debated in the Senate by the first week of March allowing the body two weeks to pass it before the unemployment benefits expire on March 14.
If the stimulus check passes Congress on March 12 and the bill is signed into law on March 14, you could get your check towards the end of the month.
The first direct deposit checks could sent in the week of March 22, meaning you could get yours around March 29.
If this time frame is respected, the first paper checks could be sent in the week of March 29 and could arrive the following week, starting from April 5.
The first EIP cards could be sent in the week of April 5 and arrive in the week of April 12.
Claims for missing stimulus money could open on May 3.
Direct deposit recipients typically get their stimulus checks faster.
These dates are not fixed, but they are a starting point if progress continues to be made.
Joe Biden’s stimulus package will alleviate financial pressuresCredit: AFP or licensors
What if you’re not eligible for a third check?
The IRS will likely use either your 2019 or 2020 tax return to determine your eligibility for a third stimulus check.
The current version of Joe Biden’s plan changes the definition of an eligible dependent to include people of all ages, not just children 16 and under, CNET reports.
This means all dependents could potentially get a payment of up to $1,400 – but that money will be added on to your family’s total rather than be sent as a separate check.
If for example you have been emancipated from your family by a court or through marriage, you could get your own stimulus check.
If you are aged 17 or older, have enlisted in the US armed forces and file your taxes independently, you could qualify for your own payment too.
A statement on the IRS website reads: “Most people who are eligible for the Recovery Rebate Credit have already received it, in advance, in these two rounds of Economic Impact Payments.”
It added: “If individuals didn’t receive a payment – or if they didn’t receive the full amounts – they may be eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2020 tax return.”
The agency urged people to file and complete an accurate tax return for 2020 in order to receive this if eligible.
The government office said eligibility for and the amount of the Recovery Rebate Credit are “based on 2020 tax year information while the Economic Impact Payments were based on 2019 tax year information”.
