The Moneyist: When will I receive my stimulus check? I’m one of the 35 million people waiting, and I sent in my 2019 tax return this month

Dear Moneyist,

I am one of the many Americans waiting on a stimulus check. I was astounded that I did not receive a stimulus check since I qualified, at least according to all IRS requirements. I just found out that my parents claimed me as a dependent. As soon as I found this out, I filed my 2019 tax return.

However, I fear it’s too late for me to receive my $1,200 stimulus check. Is it too late? The tax return deadline for 2019 was extended to July 15, so I assume there are many people like me who don’t qualify based on their 2018 return, but do qualify on the 2019 return.

When will I receive my stimulus check?

Confused son

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Dear Son,

You are one of an estimated 30 to 35 million people who are waiting on their stimulus checks from the Internal Revenue Service. Your stimulus payment is an advance on a 2020 tax credit, so you will receive the $1,200. However, it likely won’t arrive until next year or later this year, at the very earliest. By then, we may or may not be in the midst of a second wave of the pandemic.

Some 160 million stimulus checks have been sent. Here’s a breakdown, per the House Committee on Ways and Means:

• 13 to 18 million taxpayers who file returns below the $2.2 trillion CARES Act income thresholds.

• 7.5 million Social Security and Railroad Retirement beneficiaries who do not file tax returns.

• 10.7 million taxpayers who don’t file tax returns and don’t receive federal government benefits.

• Millions of Social Security Insurance-only or Veteran Affairs recipients who do not file tax returns.

“The IRS also has an estimated 10 million pieces of mail to open and process, including 4.7 million tax returns. Some of these returns may be from first-time filers who would qualify for economic impact payments,” according to the House Committee report. “Treasury and the IRS initially estimated that there would be 171 million economic impact payments under the CARES Act, which seems low given the following populations.”

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Having your bank details on file will help speed the plow for a payment next year. If the IRS does not have your bank-account information on file, it will likely take longer. Approximately 14 million Americans, or 6.5% of U.S. households, don’t have bank accounts. You can submit your bank-account and address information through the IRS tracking tool, “Get My Payment.” It should also tell you if the IRS needs more bank-account information.

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You can email The Moneyist with any financial and ethical questions related to coronavirus at qfottrell@marketwatch.com. Want to read more?Follow Quentin Fottrell on Twitterand read more of his columns here

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