New $ 1,400 stimulus checks could be on the way to millions of Americans now that the House of Representatives has passed the latest coronavirus relief bill.
The fate of the payments now rests in the hands of the Senate, which will begin considering the proposed legislation this week.
The terms require direct payments of $ 1400 per individual and per dependent.
The payments would be based on the same income thresholds as the first two incentive checks. Individuals with adjusted gross income of up to $ 75,000, household heads of up to $ 112,500, and married couples serving jointly up to $ 150,000 will receive full payment.
But the checks will be phased out for those with incomes above these levels. This time, they would be limited to individuals earning $ 100,000, households with $ 150,000 and married couples with $ 200,000.
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The coronavirus stimulus package works through the House and Senate under budget reconciliation. This process is likely to prevent major changes to the plan, although the final numbers may be subject to change.
“There will be pushbacks and efforts to reduce the size of the package,” Bill Hoagland, senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said of the upcoming Senate negotiations.
Republicans are expected to spend $ 1.9 billion in total spending, especially on state funding, more workers’ pensions and relief not directly related to the Covid-19 pandemic, he said. (In fact, the House version passed 219 to 210, without any Republican support.)
Because the $ 1,400 stimulus checks are one-time payments, it is unlikely to become a fixed point in the negotiations, Hoagland said.
Prospective timeline for $ 1400 payments
The legislation is expected to be final in mid-March, when enhanced federal unemployment benefits should expire.
As with the first two stimulus checks, most of the payments are likely to be sent by direct deposit to those who have already submitted their banking information to the IRS. According to Garrett Watson, senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, the money could start arriving on the last $ 600 checks within two weeks of the legislation being finalized.
The rest of the direct payments will be made by post as debit cards or as checks. These payments may take longer to arrive, possibly until April and May, Watson said.
One reason payments may experience delays this time is the fact that the IRS will be in the middle of the tax season when they go out, he said.
However, experience with previous payments can help make the process run more smoothly.
“The good news is that there is a little bit more infrastructure and a more formalized process to do that than last year, because they’ve been through it twice already,” Watson said.
This time, the checks are based on the 2019 or 2020 returns.
The IRS said it had sent out all ‘legally permitted’ first and second stimulus checks and was now focusing on the tax filing season.
The tax agency sent more than 160 million $ 1,200 stimulus checks totaling more than $ 270 billion. It also sent more than $ 147 million in direct payments totaling more than $ 142 billion.
It is noteworthy that people who are eligible but have not received the previous payments can claim the money through a repayment credit on their tax returns.