About the 2008 IRS Tax Rebate Checks
Who Gets What and When?
Update: Feb. 16, 2008: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the final authority on who will get a tax rebate check and how much they will get, has issued these Facts about the 2008 Stimulus Payments.
Congress has passed the $170 billion economic stimulus bill, highlighted by Tax Rebate Checks. Based on details released by the government so far, here’s how the 2008 tax rebate will work.
When Will the Checks be Mailed?
The Treasury Department has stated that the IRS will begin mailing the rebate checks starting in early May. The Treasury estimates that it should take about 10 weeks for all the checks to be mailed.
Persons who fail to file their 2007 tax returns by April 15, 2008 and request a filing extension may not receive rebate checks until as late as December.
Who Will Get Tax Rebated Checks?
Tax rebate checks will be mailed to about 117 million middle- and low-income taxpayers. Thanks to amendments made to the bill in the Senate, some 20 million retirees living on Social Security and 250,000 U.S. veterans receiving disability benefits will also get checks.
Single tax filers with adjusted gross incomes (AGI) less than $75,000 and couples filing jointly with AGIs less that $150,000 will qualify for full rebates.
Remember that your AGI is not your annual salary or income. Your AGI is your taxable income from all sources including wages, salaries, tips, interest, dividends, etc. minus IRS-allowed adjustments to income.
How Much Will You Get?
Qualifying single filers (AGI less than $75,000) will get rebates of up to $600. Qualifying couples (AGI less than $150,000) will get rebates of up to $1,200, plus $300 per dependent child, with no maximum on the number of eligible children.
Persons who owe no income taxes, but earned at least $3,000 in income from Social Security and veterans disability will get rebate checks of $300 for individuals and $600 for couples.
What if You Made More than the Maximum Income?
You will still get a check, but it will be reduced by 5-percent of the amount you earned above the AGI income caps of $75,000 for single filers and $150,000 for couples.
For example: A single filer with no children and an adjusted gross income of $80,000, or $5,000 over the AGI cap, will see their rebate check reduced by $250 (5% of $5,000), and will get a check for $350, instead of $600.
At some income point above the AGI income caps, the rebate checks will phase out completely.
For example: A single filer with no kids and an adjusted gross income of $87,000, or $12,000 over the AGI cap, will not get a rebate check because it would be reduced by the full $600 (5% of $12,000).
What Do You Have to Do to Get a Check?
To get a rebate check, you must file a tax return; either a form 1040 or 1040-EZ federal tax return for tax year 2007.
Persons who do not normally not file tax returns, like retirees and disabled veterans, will have to file a 2007 tax return in order to get a rebate check.
About SSI the Tax Rebates
Based on the Economic Stimulus Bill as passed by Congress, persons with income from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) alone will not qualify for a tax rebate check.
The law authorizing the rebate checks (H.R. 5140) specifically limits qualifying income from Social Security benefits to “any amount received by the taxpayer by reason of entitlement to - (A) a monthly benefit under title II of the Social Security Act, or (B) a tier 1 railroad retirement benefit.”
SSI is authorized under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, not Title II.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is funded by general tax revenues, not Social Security taxes. It is designed to help aged, blind, and disabled people, who have little or no income by providing cash to meet basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter.
For More Information Call the IRS
Since everybody’s tax situation is different, and final qualification for the rebate checks will be decided by the IRS based on each individual’s 2007 tax return, all specific questions regarding the rebate checks should be directed to the IRS. You can call the IRS at: Toll-Free, 1-800-829-1040 Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. your local time (Alaska & Hawaii follow Pacific Time).