 TITLE: Will 2020 Stimulus Payments Affect Your Taxes? CONTENT: How Are the Stimulus Check and My Taxes Related?\n------------------------------------------------\nThe government agency in charge of making sure you get your stimulus check is the Internal Revenue Service, which also issues federal tax refunds and collects payments. Talk of the IRS may cause a feeling of dread, especially if you tend to owe money at tax time, but there's nothing to worry about here.\nThe stimulus money is not considered taxable income. The check will not increase the amount you owe when you file your 2020 federal tax return and will not decrease your refund for the 2020 tax year. The IRS and your tax filings are only involved because the government needs to verify your income to issue your stimulus payment.\nThe federal government uses your federal tax return for 2018 or 2019 to calculate the amount of your stimulus check. If you already filed your 2019 return, that information will be the foundation for your stimulus payment. If you haven't filed a 2019 return, the IRS will rely on information from your 2018 return to determine your stimulus amount.\nBut what if your income has changed dramatically in recent years, and you worry it may complicate matters? Here's how that works:\n*   If your income is lower in 2020 than it was 2018 or 2019, you could be eligible for a stimulus check based on your 2020 income. That payment would come after you file your federal return for the 2020 tax year.\n*   If your income goes up in 2020 compared with 2018 or 2019, you won't be forced to pay back the stimulus money and won't lose any of your 2019 or 2020 tax refund.\nAnd what if you haven't recently filed taxes at all? This is how distribution works:\n*   Social Security recipients, railroad retirees and military veterans who weren't required to file 2018 or 2019 federal tax returns automatically receive a $1,200 stimulus check.\n*   Americans who do not receive federal benefits and did not file 2018 or 2019 tax returns can qualify for stimulus checks by using the IRS tool for nonfilers, or by filing a 2019 return if you earn nontaxable income or do not make enough money to normally require submitting a tax return.\nStimulus payments are being made through the end of 2020. If you do not get a stimulus payment this year, you will be able to claim it when you file your 2020 tax return next year. END