$600 Second Stimulus Check Calculator – Forbes Advisor

As of Jan. 8, over 100 million second stimulus checks have been sent by direct deposit to Americans—but many continue to wait to receive their cash (especially if they’re getting it as a paper check or debit card).

The IRS says that if you checked Get My Payment on or after Jan. 5 and saw that your payment had been mailed, you may still have to wait three to four weeks for the payment to arrive.

President Joe Biden has proposed sending a third round of checks to Americans but an actual bill has not been released yet, so it will likely be a few weeks before Congress can negotiate, vote and approve the next stimulus package and round of checks.

Read More: Third Stimulus Check Calculator: How Much Might You Get?

Use our calculator to see how much you and your family might receive in your second stimulus check.

$600 Second Stimulus Check Calculator

We’ve created this calculator to help you estimate the amount you and your family may receive.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How Much Will Each Person Receive?

• $600 for individuals
• $1,200 for married couples who file a joint tax return
• $600 for each dependent child under the age of 17 (so a family of four whose income qualifies would receive a check for $2,400)

Will Everybody Receive A Stimulus Check?

No. These payments are intended to help middle- and working-class Americans, so there are income limitations based on your tax filing status. For single people, the payments are reduced for those with Adjusted Gross Incomes (AGI) above $75,000. For married couples filing jointly, the phase-out begins at an AGI of $150,000. For those filing as head of household, the reductions begin at $112,500.

(Note: if you are single, widowed or divorced and claim a child as a dependent, you probably have been filing as a head of household.)

The payments are reduced by $5 for every $100 in AGI over the above limits. As a result, a single tax filer would see no payments if they have an AGI of $87,000 or higher. For a married couple filing jointly with no children, their payment would phase out completely with an AGI of $174,000. If you’re a head of household with two qualifying kids, your payment would phase out completely at $148,500.

Which Tax Year Is Used To Determine Eligibility?

Your 2019 tax return will be used to determine whether you’re eligible for a stimulus payment. If you receive Social Security (either retirement or disability) but didn’t file a return in 2019 (because you earned too little to be required to file), you’ll also receive a stimulus check, based on the information sent to the IRS on 2019 forms SSA-1099 and RRB-1099.

Will 2020 Tax Returns Affect How Much I Receive?

In some cases, yes. If based on your 2020 tax returns you would be entitled to a larger payment than calculated based on your 2019 returns, you will be eligible to receive the difference as a tax credit. Of course, this additional payment won’t be available until 2020 returns are filed this year.

But if the stimulus payment you are due is lower based on your 2020 income, you get to keep the higher payment that was sent to you based on your 2019 return.

Do I Need to Do Anything to Get My Second Stimulus Check?

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is emphasizing that no action is required by eligible taxpayers for the second round of Economic Impact Payments (EIPs, or stimulus checks). Paper checks started being mailed on Wednesday, Dec. 30. Read our answers to commonly asked stimulus check questions.

Will There Be A $1,400 Third Stimulus Check?

Biden has proposed sending a third round of checks to Americans. Those checks could be $1,400 to “top up” the current $600 checks being sent out, rounding them out to a total of $2,000. Details are still emerging about this proposal.

Who Will Be Eligible For A $1,400 Stimulus Check?

As of right now, it’s unclear. Biden has indicated that he would be open to negotiating the income thresholds—likely making them lower to target individuals who need them the most and to reel in the overall price tag of his proposed $1.9 trillion stimulus proposal. If the income thresholds change, individuals who qualified previously but no longer do may be able to take advantage of other forms of economic relief, such as the extended eviction moratorium and extended student loan forbearance period.

Read more: Who will count as a dependent for the $1,400 stimulus checks?

If The $1,400 Stimulus Check Passes, How Will I Get My Money?

If these checks are signed into law, the IRS and Treasury Department will likely send them the same way previous checks were sent out. The IRS regularly updates its website with guidance as these proposals become laws and are implemented.