Third Round of Stimulus: Who Will Get Checks and for How Much?
As Americans gear up for a highly likely third round of stimulus checks, many are wondering when they can see the checks in their bank account and more importantly, how big the checks will be.
Democrats have pushed for a bigger stimulus check that would give direct payments of $1,400 to qualifying individuals. Unlike the last round of stimulus checks that were off-limits to certain individuals, including mixed immigration status households, the Democrat’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package will offer relief to more people this time around.
Who Will Be Getting a Direct Payment?
So, how exactly is the money going to be divvied out? Under the third package, anyone who filed their taxes independently, meaning they were not claimed as someone's dependent, will be eligible to receive a stimulus payment. Under Biden’s proposed plan, the definition of an eligible dependent has changed and now will include people of all ages, not just children who are 16 years old and under.
Dependents will not receive a check of their own, but their $1,400 will be counted toward the family payment. The latest stimulus’ definition of a dependent will include more recipients for stimulus checks than the second round of direct payments did. In the second stimulus package, young adults age 17 through 24 were left out of the CARES Act because of the child tax credit.
Additionally, the Biden administration will be more gracious in its package than the previous administration was, as this third round will give payments to households that have “mixed” citizenship status.
How Much Will the Stimulus Check Be?
Under the House's proposal, the amount of a stimulus check will be based on taxpayers’ adjusted gross income (AGI) and the way they filed their taxes.
Individuals who make $75,000 or less will be eligible for the maximum $1,400 payment. Individuals who make more than $75,000 will have their payments phased out so that they get smaller payments. The cap is set at $100,000. Individuals who make more than this in AGI will not be eligible for any stimulus payment.
For those filing as head of household, their AGI cannot exceed $112,000. If AGI is above $112,000, the amount of payment will get smaller. The cap is set at $150,000, at which point the head of household will no longer be eligible for a stimulus payment.
For married couples filing jointly, the threshold for the full $1,400 payment cannot exceed $150,000 AGI. The stimulus payment will be smaller until the cap of $200,000 is reached, at which point the filing couple will not be eligible for a payment.
Unlike the last two stimulus packages, individuals who hit the AGI cap cannot receive payment for dependents; in contrast, the last two stimulus packages allowed individuals to get paid for their dependents even if they were above the income threshold.
CNet has established a “stimulus calculator” that allows people to get a glimpse of what their stimulus payment might look like depending on how they file, their AGI, and the number of dependents. The main difference between this third round and the last two rounds is that this latest round will put a hard cap on individuals and households who make the income limit or more.
How Can One get a Bigger Stimulus?
The stimulus payment is based on annual income. For many individuals and families, their AGI has differed drastically from 2019 to 2020 because of job losses caused by the pandemic. Because of this, the amount of stimulus payment can be drastically different depending on what tax year the government decides to go off of.
The government will likely use the latest tax information they have on file when distributing stimulus checks. While it may not be a guarantee, it could be in people’s self-interest to file their 2020 taxes earlier this year if they made less money than in 2019. In doing so, filers could increase their chances of getting a bigger stimulus payment.
