Thanks to several temporary tax provisions approved by Congress in the wake of the COVID pandemic, millions of low-income Americans can get potentially massive payments this year from the IRS, but most of them appear not to have realized that, as the agency is warning.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced Thursday it intends to inform by mail more than nine million people and families who appear to qualify for part of or all of the breaks but didn’t claim them.
The agency said Thursday that it intends to send letters to nine million people and families who appear to qualify for all or part of the breaks but didn’t claim them.
IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said in a statement that the letters will remind people of their potential eligibility and steps they can take so they don’t overlook these tax credits.
The agency reiterated that they need to file a return in order to benefit, noting it’s okay that they missed the April filing deadline and reminding them that they don’t necessarily have to have earnings to take advantage of the tax credits.
If they haven’t claimed last year’s expanded child credit, worth as much as $3,600 per child; $1,400 per person in stimulus payments; up to $8,000 for an expanded child and dependent care credit as well as a boosted Earned Income Tax Credit, people can potentially get five-figure payments.
Apart from the fact that people with little or no income can be difficult to reach, the main issue in the situation, as advocates for low-income people argue, is the fact that many are intimidated by the prospect of filing a return since they aren’t used to dealing with the tax system because they earn so little and are exempt from filing requirements.
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