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Stimulus Check
By Daphne | April 3, 2008
Are you unsure whether or not you will receive a rebate check from the IRS?
If you have already filed your 2007 tax return, you can find out within about five minutes or so whether or not you are entitled to a rebate and approximately how much you will receive.
Although the checks will start going out in about a month at the beginning of May you might not receive your check until mid summer depending on whether or not you receive a refund check from the IRS by direct deposit or via mail. If you receive your 2007 refund via direct deposit you will have your money by the end of May depending on the last two digits of your social security number. If you receive your refund via paper check, then you will have to wait longer. Check this chart to see where you will fall.
According to the IRS website, the economic stimulus checks do not affect your future tax returns. If so, then why are they called rebate checks?
Q. Is my stimulus payment taxable?
A. No. You will not owe tax on your payment when you file your 2008 federal income tax return. But you should keep a copy of the IRS letter you receive later this year listing the amount of your payment. In the event you do not qualify for the full amount this year but you do next year, you will need to have the letter as a record of the amount you previously received.
Q. Will the payment I receive in 2008 reduce my 2008 refund or increase the amount I owe for 2008?
A. No, the stimulus payment will not reduce your refund or increase the amount you owe when you file your 2008 return.
When we received rebate checks in 2001, they reduced the amount of the refund that you would receive for 2001. It still sounds too good to be true that the government is sending citizens money that doesn’t have to be repaid.
When you receive your stimulus check, what will you spend it on? I will save/invest some, give some away and spend some.
Topics: April 2008 |