Stimulus Check: What to Do If You Haven’t Received Yours Yet

While an estimated 80 million Americans were expected to receive their coronavirus stimulus checks by Wednesday, millions more are still waiting for their payouts. Beginning to hit bank accounts over the weekend, the first round of payments targeted those people who filed a 2018 or 2019 tax return and received a refund via direct deposit. With unemployment rates soaring to historic levels, Americans need the money now more than ever, and for those who haven’t received their checks just yet, there are a few things they can do to speed up the process or, at the very least, check its status.

To check the status of your stimulus check, you can now access the “Get My Payment” tool via the IRS website. Along with allowing Americans to track their payment, the tool also allows those who filed their tax returns in 2018 or 2019 but did not provide their banking information to submit direct deposit information. Receiving your payment via direct deposit will be faster than receiving it by mail, as the first round of paper checks is not anticipated to go out until April 24. The IRS is expected to mail around 5 million checks per week after that, moving up the income bracket, with the final round of checks not expected to be sent until September.

A second tool on the IRS website allows those who do not typically file a tax return to enter their information to receive their stimulus payout. Listed under the “Non-Filers: Enter Your Payment Info Here” section, the tool allows you to “easily and quickly” provide the IRS the necessary information for no fee.

Both tools require the entrance of personal information, such as full name, address, Social Security number, and banking information for direct deposit. As the stimulus checks began going out earlier this week and hitting bank accounts Wednesday, the IRS website experienced a number of technical issues, which may still persist.

“What happened is instead of having an error message or a message saying the system is very busy, it just says your information isn’t in here, that was the default,” IRS spokesperson Luis Garcia told CNBC Make It. “Just be patient, check back later. If you filed last year’s or this year’s taxes we have your information.”

Garcia also encouraged people to check the IRS’ website for the most up-to-date information, stating, “don’t worry about what your neighbor said or what you saw on Instagram. Go to the IRS website, literally 99 percent of all the questions are answered right there.”