My stimulus checks were based on me being married with no kids, but in 2020 and 2021 I had a kid and was separate (he filed sep). I am just now filing. How should I get

[mark809345]

... the amount that I should have gotten for my child but didn't because she wasn't born until 2020 so she wasn't in my 2019 record so the IRS didn't have her on record yet, until I filed my 2022 return in 2023. I don't want it to flag as fraud, but I did get the "right" amount, it just wasn't for the right people. I got my 1400 and my husband's 1400 but not a 1400 for my kid... but since I'm filing as married separate (he already did his in 2022 so I can't go joint) it's thinking I was only owed my 1400 and my child's 1400 which happens to equal the 2800 I did get, but it was only half mine since I sent husband's half to him when I got it.

[fanfare]

You have nothing to lose by amending to ask for the stimulus of your child.
you will definitely get it if you file correctly.

a 2020 amendment for more refund must be filed soon, April 15th is the last day you can do it.

Are you saying you never filed 2020 tax return?

in that case you file Form 1040, not 1040-X

@mark809345 

@mark809345 

[Opus 17]

If you filed a 2020 return and claimed your child as a dependent, you already got the rebate added to your refund.  (Note: the child must have a valid social security number before the filing deadline which was July 15, 2021 due to the pandemic.)  Why didn't you claim your child as a dependent in 2020?  Or did someone else claim the child?  If someone else claimed the child, you can't also get a rebate, unless the IRS does an investigation and determines that the other person who claimed the child was wrong and you should be allowed to claim them.  

Then again, for your 2021 tax return, if you claimed your child as a dependent, and had not already received a stimulus payment, you would have claimed the credit on your 2021 return--it was part of your refund, not a separate check.  Why didn't you claim your child on your 2021 tax return?  Did someone else claim the child?

Or are you saying that you never filed a return for those years?

Also note that, to claim any refund by amending a 2020 return (or filing a new return if you never originally filed), the return must be filed by July 15, 2024 or it will be considered too late to pay even if you qualify.