After you file

The IRS says they have finished the adjustments for the 2020 unemployment exclusion. See the following IRS announcement.


IRS completes automatic corrections of tax year 2020 accounts related to unemployment compensation e...


If you are eligible for the exclusion, you did not receive it, and you have not already filed an amended return for it, you should file an amended return (Form 1040-X) now.


You don't necessarily get a separate refund for the unemployment exclusion. You might have gotten it on your tax return, or you might not be eligible for it. You will only get an additional refund for the unemployment exclusion if all of the following are true.

 

  • You reported unemployment benefits as income on your 2020 tax return, on Schedule 1 line 7.
  • You did not get the unemployment exclusion on the 2020 tax return that you filed. The unemployment exclusion would appear as a negative amount on Schedule 1 line 8, with the abbreviation UCE on the dotted line to the left of the amount.
  • Your tax on Form 1040 line 16 is not zero.
  • Your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), not including unemployment, is less than $150,000. In other words, Form 1040 line 11 minus Schedule 1 line 7 is less than $150,000.

 

If all four of those conditions are true, and you did not already receive the additional refund, you should file an amended return.