2025 Stimulus Check Update: IRS Distributing Final Payments—Are You Eligible? Stimulus payments were a prominent feature of U.S. politics during 2020 and 2021. The Trump Administration and the Biden Administration both issued stimulus checks to a large portion of Americans at the peak of the pandemic, aiming to sustain the economy during and after the shutdowns.
The payments successfully mitigated a severe recession, although these and other pandemic responses contributed to the rising inflation that ultimately marked the end of the Biden presidency, continuing into the early days of the next Trump administration.
After the checks issued during the early Biden administration, the federal government ceased to provide additional stimulus payments. While some states initiated their own stimulus check programs, the era of federal stimulus checks seems to have concluded—at least until a new recession occurs.
Currently, Congress is deliberating on which financial package to proceed with, focusing primarily on the extent of tax and spending cuts; however, stimulus checks are not under discussion in these negotiations.
What’s Happening Now with the 2025 Stimulus Check?
There is one noteworthy exception. In December, the IRS announced plans to send payments to around 1 million individuals who had not claimed the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit on their tax returns that year.
According to the IRS, these payments were expected to be sent, “in most cases,” by the end of January, with a maximum payment of $1,400 per individual. Importantly, those who had not filed a 2021 tax return could still do so and be eligible for the payment, with the deadline set for April 15 of this year.
Increased Challenges at the IRS
There are signs that the IRS may soon face greater operational challenges.
During the Biden Administration, the Inflation Reduction Act allocated $80 billion in new funding to an agency that had long been underfunded and understaffed. A recent study revealed that the IRS “collected more than $1.1 billion from 1,600 wealthy individuals with known but unpaid tax obligations in the 2024 fiscal year, a significant increase from just $38 million the previous year.”
This influx of funding, however, has spurred a talking point among Republicans regarding the hiring of an “army” of “87,000 new IRS agents.” This claim is somewhat misleading, as it stems from an older Treasury Department analysis predicting the IRS could hire that number over several years—not all of them agents.
Beyond Stimulus Checks: Unfortunate Layoffs
In a surprising turn, substantial job cuts are impending at the IRS amid the current economic climate.
As reported by the AP, the IRS plans to lay off thousands of temporary workers just as tax season begins. Additionally, another source noted that IRS employees involved in the tax process are not allowed to accept the potential buyouts for government workers until after tax season ends.
Rather than achieving “government efficiency,” it seems that the mass layoffs will likely lead to reduced enforcement capabilities, lower revenue collection, and delayed refunds for taxpayers.
President of the United States Donald Trump speaking with attendees at the 2019 Student Action Summit hosted by Turning Point USA at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. By Gage Skidmore.
Meanwhile, this week, ABC News reported that DOGE is seeking access to the IRS’s Integrated Data Retrieval System, which contains millions of taxpayers’ private tax information.
As of the weekend, access to this system had not yet been granted.
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist, and film critic, contributing to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review, and Splice Today. A co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen resides in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Over the past decade, he has written thousands of articles covering politics, technology, and the economy. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
