– Inside Edition Staff
Haven’t received your third stimulus check yet? Here’s some important information that might account for the delay or why your payment may be lower than expected.
The IRS prioritizes getting the stimulus money first to those it can already reach through direct deposit, based on the prior payment rollouts. Therefore, those who filed their 2020 or 2019 tax returns and have a bank account on file with the tax agency will most likely get their check sooner, CBS News reported.
A factor that might impede the funds from reaching you sooner might be whether or not you already have a bank account on file with the IRS. If you do not, chances are you will have to wait several weeks for debit cards or paper checks to reach your home, the news outlet reported.
Stimulus checks started going out as early as Feb. 12, the same day President Biden signed the American Rescue Act into law. Biden said that about 85% of people would receive one of the $1,400 checks being distributed. Some get the funds instantly while others may still be waiting. Those individuals who received their stimulus payments faster had updated their bank account information with the IRS when they filed their 2020 tax return.
“You don’t need to do anything to get your stimulus check,” a TurboTax spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch in an email. “The IRS will determine eligibility based on your last tax return (either 2019 or 2020) and will likely send your payment to the bank account where your tax refund was deposited.”
Even if you haven’t filed your 2020 return yet, the expert told MoneyWatch that you can update the IRS with your current address or bank account information to ensure that your check goes to the right place.
According to the legislation, the IRS will distribute the stimulus checks until the end of 2021.
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