What an Economic Impact Payment is and who received them

An Economic Impact Payment (EIP) is a one-time payment sent directly to individuals by the U.S. Treasury during periods of national economic hardship. The payments were issued in three rounds between 2020 and 2021 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first payment went out in spring 2020, the second in winter 2020–2021, and the third in spring 2021.

The payments went to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and some non-citizens with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) who met income thresholds. Most people received their money by direct deposit to a bank account on file with the IRS, by check in the mail, or on a debit card issued by the Treasury. The amount varied depending on income level and the number of may have access to dependents, ranging from several hundred to several thousand dollars per household.

These payments are no longer being issued. If you did not receive a payment you believe you were owed, or if you received one but have questions about it for tax purposes, the information below explains how the payments worked and where to find records of yours.

Key Takeaways

  • Economic Impact Payments were issued in three separate rounds between 2020 and 2021 and are not currently being distributed.
  • You can check the status of your payment and find out how much you received by using the IRS's "Get My Payment" tool or by reviewing your tax records.
  • If you did not receive a payment you were owed, you may be able to claim it as a credit on your tax return for the year it was issued.
  • Payments were based on your most recent tax return on file with the IRS, so if your income or household changed, the amount you received may not have matched your actual circumstances.

How to learn about you received a payment and how much

The IRS provided a tool called "Get My Payment" that allowed people to check the status and amount of their Economic Impact Payments. That tool is no longer active, but you can still find a record of what you received by reviewing your tax documents or contacting the IRS directly.

If you filed a tax return for 2020 or 2021, your payment information should appear on that return. The IRS issued a form called the 1040-PR (or similar variant depending on your situation) that showed the total EIP amounts you received during that tax year. You can request a copy of your tax return from the IRS by filing Form 4506-C, which takes about 5 to 10 business days to process.

You can also call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to speak with a representative who can tell you the payment amounts and dates you received. Have your Social Security number and tax return information ready when you call. Wait times are often long, especially during tax season.

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

If you believe you were owed an Economic Impact Payment but never received it, you have options depending on which round of payments you missed and when you discover the problem.

The most direct route is to claim the payment as a credit on your tax return for the year it was issued. If you did not receive the first payment (issued in 2020), you claim it on your 2020 tax return using the Recovery Rebate Credit. If you missed the second payment (issued in early 2021), you claim it on your 2020 return as well. If you missed the third payment (issued in spring 2021), you claim it on your 2021 return. You will need to calculate the amount you should have received based on your income and dependents, then subtract any amount you actually did receive.

To claim the credit, you file your tax return as normal and include the Recovery Rebate Credit line item. If the credit is larger than the taxes you owe, you receive the difference as a refund. This process can take several months, as the IRS must process your return and issue the refund.

If you already filed your return for that year without claiming the credit, you can file an amended return using Form 1040-X. This tells the IRS you are correcting your original return to include the payment you missed.

Why the amount you received might not match what you expected

Economic Impact Payments were calculated based on your most recent tax return on file with the IRS at the time each payment was issued. If your income, filing status, or number of dependents changed between your last tax return and when the payment was sent, the amount you received may have been too high or too low.

For example, if you earned more income in 2020 than you reported on your 2019 tax return, the first payment was based on your 2019 income and may have been larger than you were actually owed. Conversely, if you had a child in 2021 but your most recent return was from 2019, you did not receive the additional payment per dependent that you might have been owed.

The IRS did not automatically recalculate payments based on life changes. Instead, you had to account for the difference when you filed your next tax return. If you received too much, you might owe it back (though the IRS did not pursue repayment for most people). If you received too little, you claimed the difference as the Recovery Rebate Credit on your return.

Economic Impact Payments and your tax situation

Economic Impact Payments were not considered taxable income, meaning you did not have to report them as earnings on your tax return. However, they did affect certain tax credits and benefits you might have been claiming.

For instance, some means-tested benefits like Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or certain state assistance programs counted the payment as income or assets for a temporary period, which could have reduced your benefit amount. If you received SSI, Medicaid, or other need-based benefits, the payment may have triggered a review of your case.

If you have questions about how a payment affected your specific tax situation or benefits, the IRS website (irs.gov) has detailed information organized by payment round, and you can also consult a tax professional or call the IRS directly.

If you moved or changed banks after receiving a payment

If you moved to a new address after the IRS mailed your payment, the check may have gone to your old address. If you changed banks or closed an account after providing direct deposit information to the IRS, the payment may have been rejected by your bank.

In either case, the IRS would have issued a replacement check, but it may have taken several weeks to arrive. If you never received a replacement, you can claim the payment as a credit on your tax return using the Recovery Rebate Credit process described above.

If you received a check but it was damaged or lost, you cannot cash it after a certain period (typically 12 months from the issue date). In that case, you also claim the credit on your tax return.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I still get an Economic Impact Payment now?

No. The three rounds of payments ended in 2021 and are not being issued anymore. If you were owed a payment you did not receive, you claim it as a credit on your tax return for the year it was issued, not as a new payment.

What if I owe back taxes or child support—was my payment taken?

The IRS did not offset Economic Impact Payments for back taxes owed to the federal government, but some states did offset them for state taxes. Child support obligations could result in offset in some cases. If you believe your payment was offset, you can contact the IRS or the relevant state agency to find out why.

Do I need to report the payment on my tax return?

You do not report the payment itself as income. However, if you did not receive a payment you were owed, you claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your return for that tax year. If you received more than you were owed, you may need to account for the overpayment when you file.

What if I was claimed as a dependent on someone else's return but also filed my own?

The payment went to whoever claimed you as a dependent on their tax return, not to you directly. If you filed your own return but were claimed as a dependent by a parent or guardian, you did not receive a separate payment. This is a common source of confusion, especially for young adults and students.

How do I know if I was actually owed a payment?

You were owed a payment if you were a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, had a valid Social Security number, were not claimed as a dependent on someone else's return, and had income below the phase-out threshold (which varied by filing status but was generally around $75,000 to $99,000 for single filers). The exact amount depended on your income and the number of may have access to dependents. You can calculate what you should have received using the IRS's guidelines on irs.gov.