A payment won’t be issued to someone who has died before January 1, 2020. If you filed a joint return in 2019 and your spouse died before January 1, 2020, you won’t receive a $600 payment for your deceased spouse, but you’ll still be issued up to $600 for you and $600 for any qualifying children, if all other eligibility criteria are met.
Regarding eligible individuals who died in 2020, the Recovery Rebate Credit may be claimed on line 30 of their 2020 tax return. Please refer to the instructions for the 2020 Form 1040 for more information.
According to the 2020 1040 Instructions for line 30:
Line 30
Recovery Rebate Credit
The recovery rebate credit was paid out to eligible individuals in two rounds of advance payments called economic impact payments. The economic impact payments were based on your 2018 or 2019 tax year information. The recovery rebate credit is figured like the economic impact payments except that the credit eligibility and the credit amount are based on your 2020 tax year information. If you didn’t receive the full amount of the recovery rebate credit as economic impact payments, you may be able to claim the recovery rebate credit on your 2020 Form 1040 or 1040-SR.
Generally, you are eligible to claim the recovery rebate credit if in 2020 you were a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien, weren't a dependent of another taxpayer, and have a valid social security number. This includes someone who died in 2020, if you are preparing a return for that person. Use the Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet to figure the credit, if any, you can claim. For more information on the recovery rebate credit, go to IRS.gov/RRC.
