Hello there! So I always file married but filling separate. My husband has one of the kids as dependent and I have one as well. That is, in my paystub I have one dependent only. It has been like this for the past 10 years or so. Now, when I filled taxes for 2020 , I decided to put both of my children when I filled taxes. I noticed how I only received the stimulus check for one child. Actually recently, even the top up payment was only for one child it seems (was $500). So what is happening, why they are not giving me the assistance for my two children. Do you think this has something to do with the fact that I just started to put the second child (he’s 14 years old). Is the IRS using my 2019 and/or previous years to calculate my stimulus checks and/or assistance? What should I do? Thanks in advance!!!
The stimulus checks were based on your 2019 return. However, when you filed your 2020 with both children, the additional amount would have been added. Per the IRS Q&A, " If we have not processed your 2020 tax return when we determine the amount of your advance Child Tax Credit payment for any month starting July, we will estimate the amount of your 2021 Child Tax Credit based on information shown on your 2019 tax return (including information you entered into the Non-Filer tool on IRS.gov in 2020). Once we have processed your 2020 return, we will recalculate your advance Child Tax Credit payments and adjust any remaining monthly payments."
To add to Nick's excellent answer, if by "top up payments" you are referring to the Advance Child Tax Credit payments that started this month, I wanted to point out that a payment of $500 is indeed for two children.
The maximum payment you would receive for a single child is $300 per month.