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Busting A Popular Myth About The $1200 Economic Impact Payment
There’s an online myth going around that the $1200 Economic Impact Payment is a tax credit which will need to be paid back on our (those of us who receive it) 2020 taxes. I’m sure you’ve seen it, if you haven’t shared it… which I have. And so I’m going to explain how this works, courtesy of a friend of mine who works at the IRS.
1. How Will I Get Paid?
Do nothing. Don’t click on spam emails they send you, don’t give anyone your social security number, don’t get scammed. The government has your banking info if you’ve done anything online re: taxes in the past, and the odds are very good that they’ll get it right. You should see your deposit in the next week or two.
2. Are There Strings Attached?
There aren’t any strings attached. You won’t have to pay this back, and it isn’t coming out of your 2020 refund if you’d get one. The measure is just to put some money into people’s pockets to try to jumpstart the economy. It isn’t much, and there are loads of countries which have done a lot more — but, that said, it’s the best our weakened federal government could do in this crisis.
It’s best to check on the official website, but this little nugget of truth was welcome good news for me when I heard about it…
