In April of this year, as millions of American households started to receive their Economic Impact Payments (EIPs), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the US Department of the Treasury established what they termed the “Plus $500 Push.”
This effort was designed to ensure that those who receive who receive certain federal benefits (including Social Security retirement, survivor or disability benefits, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement, and Veterans Affairs Compensation and Pension benefits) and did NOT file a tax return in either 2018 or 2019, could still register their qualifying children (defined as a dependent under 17-years-old with a social security number) to receive an additional $500 EIP for each child.
The deadline to register for eligible adults to register their dependents passed in May, but the IRS is now encouraging those households that missed the originally deadline to use the non-filers portal, from now through September 30, 2020 to ensure that they receive the additional $500 per qualifying child. The IRS anticipates that payments through this renewed Plus $500 Push will be issued in mid-October. For more information, please consult the IRS press release from August 14, 2020.
And finally, the IRS is reminding Americans “with little or no income” that have yet to receive an EIP (and are not required to file a federal tax return) are still eligible to receive a stimulus payment themselves. They are also directed to utilize the non-filers portal at irs.gov, but must act by October 15, 2020, to ensure that they receive their EIP in the current calendar year.
