We are engaged and financially I'm drained from supporting him and became homeless in the process of his incarceration. He will be getting out in a week with nothing to come home to not even clothes and shoes.
You cannot claim him as a dependent since he was incarcerated and the State/County/City was providing for his support.
Your boyfriend is not your dependent because he did not live in your home all 365 days of the year.
In most cases, an incarcerated person can file a tax return in their own name to claim the stimulus rebates, if a stimulus was not already paid directly to their bank account.
You cannot claim an adult dependent who is not related to you if they did not live with you for all of the tax year, so you will not be able to claim your BF. As for stimulus payments, he needs to file his own tax return to seek the recovery rebate credits for 2020 and 2021 if he did not receive those payments.
His 2020 return will have to be filed by mail, and he can expect it to take at least six to nine months to be processed. He can e-file a 2021 return but will need to use "zero" as his AGI in order to e-file it.
The first EIP --or stimulus check--- was issued in 2020 It was for $1200 for adults and $500 for a dependent under the age of 17. The IRS used information from either your 2019 or 2020 tax return to issue those checks so they could send them out in a hurry.
The 2nd EIP or stimulus was issued in late 2020 or early 2021 and was $600 for adults and $600 for dependents under age 17.
If you did not receive the 1st and/or 2nd stimulus check you can get it by filing a 2020 tax return and using the recovery rebate credit in Federal Review. It will end up on line 30 of a 2020 tax return and will be added to your refund (or reduce your tax due).
The 3rd EIP--or stimulus check-- was sent out in mid-March or later in 2021 and was for $1400 per person--adults and dependents no age limit.
If you did not get the 3rd EIP payment you can get it by filing a 2021 tax return and using the recovery rebate credit in Federal Review. The credit will go on line 30 of your Form 1040 and will add to your refund (or reduce your tax due).
Online preparation and e-filing for 2018 and 2019 and 2020 is permanently closed.
To file a return for a prior tax year
If you need to prepare a return for 2018, 2019 or 2020 you can purchase and download desktop software to do it, then print, sign, and mail the return(s)
https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-taxes/past-years-products/
You may also want to explore purchasing the software from various retailers such as Amazon, Costco, Best Buy, Walmart, Sam’s, etc.
Remember to prepare your state return as well—if you live in a state that has a state income tax.
When you mail a tax return, you need to attach any documents showing tax withheld, such as your W-2’s or any 1099’s. Use a mailing service that will track it, such as UPS or certified mail so you will know the IRS/state received the return.
Federal and state returns must be in separate envelopes and they are mailed to different addresses. Read the mailing instructions that print with your tax return carefully so you mail them to the right addresses.
Note: The desktop software you need to prepare the prior year return must be installed/downloaded to a full PC or Mac. It cannot be used on a mobile device.