Update on Get My Payment: Deadline of May 13th for Direct Deposit Information
May 11, 2020
ACA update on CARES Act: Get My Payment now functioning. Deadline for providing Direct Deposit information May 13th.
The Get My Payment online tool allows individuals to provide the IRS with their U.S. bank account information for Direct Deposit receipt of their recovery rebate and to track their rebate. Since its launch, the tool has experienced glitches resulting in error messages for many users.
ACA learned from the IRS last week that many of the glitches have been corrected including problems related to the foreign address input fields. Many Americans abroad have reported that they are now able to input their bank information and get updates on their recovery rebate using their foreign address. If after inputting your information into Get My Payment you receive the message, “We don’t have enough information yet,” this does not mean that you are ineligible for a rebate. The message probably indicates that the IRS is still calculating your recovery rebate amount. Eligibility for a recovery rebate is determined by an individual’s filing status (individual or joint) and by their Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). Not everyone will receive the full rebate amount and the amount may be adjusted depending on filing status and AGI - the IRS must calculate the rebate amount based this criteria.
The IRS also announced on Friday, May 8th that the deadline for using Get My Payment to input Direct Deposit information is May 13th. ACA has contacted the IRS and noted that, given the delay in correcting the foreign address input field problems, the IRS should extend the deadline. Americans overseas lost several weeks of time when they could not provide the IRS with this data due to problems with Get My Payment and now only have several days to do so. ACA urges individuals who want to provide their Direct Deposit information via Get My Payment to act quickly. Tracking payments with Get My Payment will still be possible after the May 13th deadline, only the Direct Deposit feature is subject to the deadline.
Some individuals will have issues depositing U.S. checks into their foreign bank account (some foreign banks will not allow this). If you receive a message that your rebate has been processed and a check is being sent to your foreign address or you are unable to provide the IRS with Direct Deposit information, the State Department Federal Credit Union (SDFCU) may be able to help. U.S.-based checks can be deposited into SDFCU bank accounts using the SDFCU mobile app, or by using online banking if the mobile app is not available in your country (30 day wait-period for this feature with new accounts). For more details see: https://www.sdfcu.org/24-hour-banking#online-banking.
Please note: for individuals who are already receiving Social Security benefits there is no need to register your bank account information for direct deposit. Question 4 on the “Economic Impact Payment Information Center” explains how these individuals’ payments will be processed.
A4. You are not required to file a tax return and will automatically receive a $1,200 Payment if you received Social Security retirement, SSDI, survivors benefits, SSI, or Railroad Retirement benefits in 2019. You do not need to contact the IRS, Social Security Administration (SSA), or Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). The IRS will use the information from your 2019 benefits to generate a Payment to you if you did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019. You will receive your Payment as a direct deposit or by mail, just as you would normally receive your federal benefits.
When dealing with coronavirus recovery rebates, which is inherently a tax subject and may entail issues of tax compliance, readers should carefully consider their obligation to be tax compliant. There may be situations where they should consult a tax professional. The ACA Expat Tax Services Directory is an important resource for information.