The Internal Revenue Service has been encouraging taxpayers to put off filing their 2021 income tax returns till the October 17 deadline. These are those who have requested an extension in their filing time. They need to complete the return electronically quickly if they have all the relevant information with them. They do not have to wait for the October deadline. Failure to file within the deadline could also mean losing out on the stimulus check amount.
Many taxpayers have requested the income tax filing extension and the date was set as October 17, 2022, by the tax authorities. But filing before the summer vacation could be a winning effort for people who have all the relevant information necessary to file their returns.
A statement released from the office of Chuck Rettig, the IRS Commissioner has revealed that even as the IRS continues working hard to process tax returns and address inventory issues, it urges people to go for an electronic filing at the earliest. Depending on the deadline to file their taxes coupled mean the difference between getting the Child Tax Credit stimulus check or losing out on it.
Late filing beyond the October 17 deadline could also mean losing out on refunds or having to pay extra penalties and interest. Going for an electronic filing of their accounts could also mean losing out on the generous Child Tax Credit stimulus check, or the 50% of it that remains due after half of it was paid between July and December 2021.
Under normal circumstances, filers who decide not to file their tax return as they had insufficient income in the financial year to require them to file will not have to pay a penalty if the administration owes them a refund. But they will miss out on the refund if they miss the extended deadline.
The IRS has advised income tax filers to file their 2021 income tax returns electronically and chose the direct deposit option if they are due a refund. They will get it within days, instead of the weeks, it takes for a paper check bringing your returns through the US Postal Service.
The refunds will go directly from the tax authorities to the financial account or bank account of the filer. If the filer has a prepaid debit card, they can get the refund applied to the card by providing the account and routing runners to the IRS. The authorities process a majority of the filed returns and give direct deposit stimulus checks within 3 weeks.
Families Get Their Second Part Of The CTC Stimulus Check
People had strongly expected the Child Tax Credit stimulus check to be extended through 2025 as desired by President Biden under his American Families Plan. His call for a 4-year extension of the $3,000-$3,600 child tax credit stimulus check was supported by an overwhelming majority of Democrats in both chambers of Congress. Some Democratic Senators even wanted to make the CTC stimulus check permanent with no expiration date. The Republicans were just as firm in their total opposition to the bill.
With the Senate vertically split right down the middle, it was usually left to Vice President Kamala Harris to push through any bill by a simple majority using her vote as a tiebreaker.
But Biden’s tenure has been marked by the term of two Democrat Senators who have opposed the President in every move that he has made in his short term in office. Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have their lobbies to protect, including the powerful and rich coal and oil lobbies.
With funds pouring into their coffers, they opposed all moves that would hurt the collective interests of these two industries. The CTC stimulus check proposal collapsed and remained confined to the six months between July and December 2021 and the 50% that residents got after filing their 2022 income tax returns.
The Benefits Of The CTC Stimulus Checks That Americans Missed
The CTC stimulus checks proved to be a lifeline for low and middle-income parents. It cut down on child poverty and put money in the pocket of families. It provided children and their families with extra payment throughout the year that helped them provide their children with proper meals, a first in several years.
It also helped them meet the cost of child care, which also ensured that many single parents got to keep their jobs. It also helped families with the cost of health care, diapers, taxes, clothing, and even home rent in many cases.
President Biden Had Realized That The Proposition Was Promising
Politicians and administration alike realized that such legislation could help bind the country together. And this is at a time when the nation desperately needs such support. But while this stimulus check had broad-based support, the Republicans remained firm in their opposition and were more concerned with dumping the proposal immediately after December 2021.
The tax-linked credit proposal had the support of almost all the Senators. The number of people who stood to benefit was staggering. While child poverty cost America between $800 billion and $1.1 trillion every year, the CTC stimulus check helped lift around 4.1 million children below 18 years, and their families, from the debilitating clutches of poverty.
This was just the kind of legislation that could bind the nation together when it most desperately needed such support from the federal government.
The CTC Stimulus Check Was A Tale Of Lost Opportunity
The CTC child tax credit was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was frittered away due to the political obduracy of the Republicans, and the political opportunism of a couple of Democratic Senators.
Congress let this stimulus check to expire even as Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema dealt a final blow. The Child Tax Credit stimulus check had managed to reach the most deserving section of the society, the Blacks, Hispanics, and single mothers, 70% of whom were deprived of any f form of stimulus check and federal relief.
The dramatic introduction of the CTC payments gave immediate support even as it eliminated the phase-in rule that was previously in vogue. It capped the credit at 15% of the family’s income.
