By Joshua Huff, sports editor
WASHINGTON — Americans can expect to start receiving checks from the $2 trillion stimulus deal struck by lawmakers of both parties within the next couple of weeks, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said on Thursday.
“Within two weeks the first payments will be direct deposited into taxpayers’ accounts,” Mnuchin said during a White House press conference. “We want to get this money quickly into your hands.”
Yet, according to the Associated Press, individuals who do not have direct deposit setup with the IRS could possibly have to wait up to several weeks or even months to get a check in the mail. In a memo obtained by the AP, the IRS will start sending out paper checks the week of May 4 and will send out around five million checks a week, which means “it could take up to 20 weeks to get all the checks out. That timeline would delay some checks until the week of Aug. 17,” the AP said.
The IRS will make about 60 million payments to Americans through direct deposit in mid-April, likely the week of April 13. To be eligible for direct deposit, the IRS needs to have the direct deposit information from individual’s 2018 or 2019 tax returns. However, people without direct deposit set up with the IRS will soon have the option to input their account information online, Mnuchin said. He did not specify how or when.
In addition, individuals who receive Social Security do not have to file a tax return to receive a stimulus check.
“Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return do not need to take an action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account,” Mnuchin said earlier this week.
The stimulus package stipulates that anyone who earns $75,000 or less will receive $1,200, and couples making $150,000 or less will receive twice that amount, with an additional $500 per child, which means $2,400 per married couple plus payments per child. The payments decrease for individuals and couples who make more money, with individuals who make more than $99,000 not eligible.
Those earning more than $99,000, or $198,000 for joint filers, are not eligible.
The stimulus checks will be issued in reverse order of adjusted gross income. That means that people with the lowest income will get payments first.