Filed 2019 taxes on 04/15/2020, Will my stimulus be based on 2018. My pay was halved in 19.

[rallard29]

Hi all,

I planned on filing my taxes on the original tax day as I owed ~$2,000.  Well, on that same day all my friends and family were receiving their "returns".  I was shocked I did not receive one as well.  I thought 2018 was used for direct deposit information... nothing else.  The communication was inconsistent and difficult to get a straight answer.  I should have started here.  I was laid off in 2018 so my income higher than it has been over the past 10 years.  I was given a nice severance for almost 15 years of loyalty.  However, according to 2019 taxes I qualify for the full amount plus the money for 4 children.  I, like most in this time, need the extra shot in the arm due to a reduction in hours.  Will the IRS rectify this situation?

tldr; for example, as a married filing jointly couple with 4 kids our income was $200,000 in 2018.  In 2019 it was less than $100,000.   Did filing 4/15/20 ruin any chance for a much needed stimulus check?

[SusanY1 · Accepted solution]

If your income in 2018 that was on file with the IRS was too high and disqualifies you for the payment, the filing the 2019 return with the lower income is the only way to potentially see the payment prior to filing your 2020 tax return. 

The IRS is still processing payments, the payments that went out this week were not the only set of payment they expect to distribute.  However, they have given no indication about the processes used to determine who gets payments when. 

It is possible that a payment will be sent some time after your 2019 tax return is processed.  However, it is not known what sort of timeline there may be for this. 

At the latest, you would be eligible for the payment as a refundable credit on your 2020 tax return that you file in 2021. 

You can check the status of your payment here: Get my Payment.  I expect in your case that data is not yet available, but bookmark the page for future reference. 

I hope things get better soon!