Stimulus Checks: If You're Missing Part of Your Payment, Help Could Be on the Way

Millions of Americans have already received the economic impact payment included in the CARES Act, but the Internal Revenue Service is still ironing out some issues, especially for dependents. The CARES Act's stimulus check program included $500 for dependants under 17, but some children have not received that payment, which was supposed to be added to their parent or guardian's check. The IRS on Wednesday announced that some dependents would finally get that check this month.

The IRS is planning to send out $500 per child to individuals who used the Non-Filers tool before May 17 and claimed at least one child who qualified for the payment, according to a new statement on the IRS' website. Anyone who used the Non-Filers tool, those who do not need to file federal taxes, did not receive the $500-per-dependent added to their check due to an error not fixed until May 17.

"IRS will automatically issue additional $500 EIP per qualifying child to affected individuals in early August. Direct deposit payments are scheduled for August 5, 2020, and paper checks or debit cards are scheduled to be mailed August 7, 2020," the IRS' site reads. Those who used the Non-Filers tool to apply for the payment can still use the "Get My Payment" tool to track the new check. A letter will also be mailed with information on the new payment. If you received your portion of the check via direct deposit, the dependents' payment would be sent to the same bank account.

The IRS announced the fix after Rep. Richard Neal, the Chairman for the House Ways and Means Committee, and Sen. Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate's Finance Committee, sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig on the issue. They pointed out that many Americans have only received part of their stimulus checks, including "almost half a million individuals who did not receive payment for dependents they registered on the non-filer portal." Other groups who did not receive their full payments include surviving spouses who filed with now-deceased spouses and taxpayers who had "injured source claims on file," the Congressional Democrats said.

The CARES Act included a one-time payment of $1,200 to Americans who filed federal taxes for 2018 or 2019 and earned $75,000 or less. Joint filers who earned $150,000 or less were eligible for $2,400. Individuals who earn between $75,000 and $99,000 were eligible for smaller payments, but anyone earning over $99,000 was not eligible for any amount.

President Donald Trump's administration and Congress are now working on another coronavirus relief bill, which is expected to include another one-time stimulus payment. Republicans and Democrats have called to expand the payments to include dependents over 17, who were excluded from the CARES Act.