Stimulus checks weren’t supposed to affect our taxes? I put 600 instead of 1200 and they took 600 of my return? Why?

[xmen10-]

Did I pay myself out of  my income tax?

[xmasbaby0]

No your stimulus money has not been taxed.   But if you put the wrong amount in the recovery rebate credit section --- the IRS cross checked and recalculated your refund.   (You said "I received $600"----the IRS took a look and said---"wait, no--- this person got $1200"  )

[DawnC]

Your return was adding the entire $1200 before you entered the amount you received.   If you would have entered $1200, the refund would have dropped by $1200.   The full stimulus amounts were already included in your refund amount.   You can look at Form 1040 to see that the stimulus does not affect the amount of your refund.   The recovery rebate (the amount you were shorted) is included on Line 30.   If you received the correct amount of stimulus payments, $0 will show on Line 30 and your refund amount does not include any stimulus payments.    If you did not receive the correct amounts of stimulus payments, the difference between what you should have received and what you did receive will show up on Line 30 and this amount is added to your refund amount.   

Your refund is the amount of tax you owe less withholding, payments, and credits.   Those who received their stimulus don't get anything added to their refund.   But if you did not receive the correct amounts, the missing payments are added to your refund.    

[xmen10-]

I’m not following you. If our stimulus money doesn’t affect our tax refund, what would it matter. I was off by $600 so they took $600 out of the amount I got back on my refund. If that is correct the stimulus was basically taken out of my income tax. The stimulus check was basically a loan from the amount of my income tax return. If I would have received 1800 as the first stimulus check they would take 1200 out of my tax return? What if my return was zero, would I have to pay the irs back the the money they sent me?

[xmasbaby0 · Accepted solution]

You did not follow the math.    When you mis-stated and said you only received $600, the software added $600 to your refund.  You were not entitled to that $600 since you really received $1200.   So when the IRS checked to see how much stimulus was sent to you, they recalculated your inflated refund and took the extra $600 away.   Letting you keep it would have been "double dipping" for you.

[VolvoGirl]

No.  But you already got it then tried to claim it again on your return.  You had to enter the right amount for each one to see if you qualified for more.  Like if you had a new dependent.

Since you entered the wrong amount Turbo Tax thought you didn't get the full amount and added it to your return again.  So your refund was too high.  You are not paying it back.  It just shouldn't have been added to your tax return in the first place.