The IRS announced it will send automatic payments to taxpayers who missed the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns. These payments are expected to go out before the end of December.
IRS officials discovered about 1 million taxpayers who were eligible but didn't claim the credit. The agency said this will help simplify the process.
“These payments are an example of our commitment to go the extra mile for taxpayers,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. He added, “We realized that one million taxpayers overlooked claiming this complex credit when they were actually eligible.”
Most taxpayers have already received the Recovery Rebate Credit and related stimulus payments. These credits were created due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The automatic payments apply to taxpayers who left the Recovery Rebate Credit field blank or entered $0 when they should have claimed it. These taxpayers will receive payments by late January 2025.
The payment will go to the bank account listed on their 2023 return or their address of record. The amount will vary, but the maximum is $1,400 per individual.
The total amount of payments is expected to be around $2.4 billion. A letter will be included with the payment to confirm receipt of the Recovery Rebate Credit.
If the bank account listed on the 2023 return is closed, taxpayers don’t need to worry. The payment will be returned to the IRS, which will send the refund to the taxpayer’s address. Taxpayers who haven’t filed their 2021 return must do so by April 15, 2025, to claim the credit.