Third stimulus check: When your payment could come if the bill passes Wednesday - CNET

Would your stimulus check arrive in March, or later? Here's what to know.

Sarah Tew/CNET

The $1.9 trillion stimulus bill will face its final vote on Wednesday, when it's expected to pass the House of Representatives and receive President Joe Biden's signature before this Sunday, March 14. The move will authorize the IRS and Treasury to send $1,400 stimulus checks to tens of millions of households (calculate your payment total here). So when would your third stimulus check arrive?

The answer may not be so simple. Biden said the checks will start to arrive in March. A "large number of Americans" can expect to "receive relief by the end of the month," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday, while also acknowledging that the Treasury has to "work through the mechanics" of sending every eligible recipient their check in the middle of tax season.

Tax time doesn't present the only potential hiccup. The IRS would also have a new stimulus check equation to follow, since the new check would impose a firm income limit to "target" the new checks. Then there's the question of your stimulus payment priority group. Despite your best efforts, you may not get a choice if your stimulus payment arrives in the first wave or one of the last. Some people may also find they have to wait months to receive all their stimulus money, if any problems arise, including from the 2019/2020 tax confusion. We'll walk you through what we know. This story was recently updated.

Would your stimulus check arrive in March, or later?

First things first. The date the IRS begins to send stimulus payments may not square up with the date you actually receive your money in your bank account or in the mail. Remember, it takes time for the IRS to process the well over 100 million payments expected in this third round of checks. Even tiny errors could cause a delay in you receiving your full or partial payment. (Here's more information for SSDI and SSI recipients, and other nonfilers.)

The bill is on track to become law by March 14, which means that the first batch of payments will begin to go out before April 1. Tens of millions of direct deposit recipients could receive a check before April 1, followed by staggered start dates for physical checks and EIP cards. 

But that's only for the dates the IRS will begin to send checks. It could take weeks for the IRS to process every group's funds and more time for the transactions to go through, especially if you're issued a paper check or EIP card. Any additional complication could delay your payment. The schedule below reflects our best guesses, based on the IRS' timeline for the $600 stimulus check.

Stimulus check: Potential delivery dates (these could change)

Stimulus check passes Congress	Wednesday, March 10	Wednesday, March 10
Stimulus bill signed into law	Thursday, March 11	Saturday, March 13
First direct deposit check sent	Week of March 17	Week of March 22
First paper checks sent	Week of March 24	Week of March 29
First EIP cards sent	Week of March 31	Week of April 5
IRS deadline to finish sending checks	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021
Claims for missing stimulus money open	Likely 2022	Likely 2022

What are the 3 key payment priority groups, and why does it matter?

What we learned from the first two checks is that how you get your stimulus money often dictates when you get it. 

• Direct-deposit recipients: Typically got their stimulus money in the first wave. But both times there were issues involving deposits going to temporary accounts that were rejected by banks. In some cases, these people got paper checks or EIP cards instead, or had to wait for the issue to resolve.
• Paper checks: This is the payment type the IRS sent out second. This method can take weeks to arrive by mail, but the check can be deposited or cashed right away.
• EIP cards: This payment type arrives as a prepaid debit card you must activate online to use. The IRS issued EIP cards last, delaying receipt for this recipient group by weeks.

Yes, your payment group could change from last time

Your group could also change. With the second stimulus checks, the IRS told CNET in January that some people who received a physical check or EIP card the first time may have been paid by the other method the second time around. And, anecdotally, we learned of people who received direct deposit payments the first time finally getting an EIP card in the mail -- and not an electronic bank transfer -- weeks after the IRS tool said the payment was issued. 

Now playing: Watch this: Stimulus check No. 3: What you need to know

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While you won't have the final say in how you get your payment, we recommend signing up for direct deposit with the IRS when you submit your 2020 tax return, if you ordinarily file taxes. If you already have an account, make sure your details are correct. We also suggest you try to file your taxes quickly. While you can file an extension to submit your taxes later (you'd still have to pay taxes owed now) whether that will help or hurt you may get a little complicated.

The other payment groups loosely defined (by us) include Social Security beneficiaries who received payments a different way the first time if they're part of the SSI or SSDI programs, and people with more complex scenarios that could lead to potential issues or holdups receiving their money. People in different child support situations are one example we've seen, as are people who are incarcerated and people with complex citizenship scenarios.

Tax season could slow down stimulus check delivery

Since a third stimulus check is likely to drop in the middle of tax season (taxes are due April 15), the IRS may have to calculate your total based on the most recent tax filing it has. That would be your 2020 taxes if you file early, or 2019 taxes if the check is ready before your tax return is. This could also disqualify some people from getting a third stimulus payment. (Learn more about some of the stimulus check exceptions and catches here.)

If you're owed money, you might have to wait a year to claim it, until you file your 2021 taxes in 2022, according to the latest proposal (PDF) under consideration. Filing for a tax extension could also change your timeline in a way that could be different if the IRS were to extend the tax due date itself (we haven't heard anything more about this).

By mid-March, tens of millions of Americans may have already received their tax refunds, which could make it tricky for the IRS to straighten out problems or redact refunds after issuing. 

How you get your second stimulus check could influence how soon your payment arrives.

Sarah Tew/CNET

When would the IRS stop sending stimulus checks?

The Jan. 15 deadline for the second stimulus check approved in December was written into the text of the bill without explanation. Anyone who didn't receive all or part of their second payment must claim it as part of the IRS' Recovery Rebate Credit on their tax return to get the funds owed -- even if they have nonfiler status and aren't typically required to file taxes.

The latest Senate form of the bill (PDF) would give the IRS a Dec. 31, 2021, cutoff to complete sending out the third stimulus checks. 

Quick tips to (maybe) help get your stimulus check faster

There may be a few things you can do to help speed up receipt of a third payment, assuming the stimulus bill is approved. For example, signing up for direct deposit with your 2020 tax return would put you in the priority category for a third stimulus payment. 

If you've moved recently, tell the IRS and USPS. Here are our other suggestions for how people can make it more likely they'll get their checks faster. Note that there could be some changes to qualifications that may not apply to a possible third stimulus check.

The first two stimulus checks were nominally sorted by different payment groups, and one had a clear advantage over the others.

Sarah Tew/CNET

More stimulus check details you might want to know

Stimulus checks aren't necessarily a one-size-fits-all situation. Here are our guides for:

Here's everything you need to know about stimulus checks, including what to do if you ran into problems with either of the first two payments.

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