This week, millions of Americans eagerly logged on to the IRS site to check their status regarding the coronavirus stimulus checks. Unfortunately, many of them were greeted by a ‘Payment Status Not Available’ error.
Earlier, the Treasury Department and IRS had launched a ‘Get My Payment’ tool to provide people with the status of their payment including the date of payment.
Once you entered basic information, the tool would let you know when you were to receive the stimulus check. Though some taxpayers received their payments without a hitch, others were not so lucky as the tool returned a “Payment Status Not Available” error message. Quite frustrating, right?
So, what exactly does this error mean and why you are getting it?
The IRS’s Get My Payment portal is aimed at assisting people to know whether they are eligible or not for the $1,200 coronavirus stimulus checks that the government is sending to most Americans. However, the system has been returning the “Payment Status Not Available” error since its launch.
The Internet Patrol is completely free, and reader-supported. Your tips via CashApp, Venmo, or Paypal are appreciated! Receipts will come from ISIPP.
CashApp us
Venmo us
Paypal us
According to a statement posted on their website, the IRS says users are likely to receive the error message for the following reasons:
If you are ineligible for payment (check here to see who is eligible and who is not)
If you have not filed a tax return for one of either 2018 or 2019 (if you filed in 2018 that is sufficient, as the government has extended the date to file 2019 until July 15, 2020).
If you only recently filed your return, or if you are not required to file, and instead have provided information through the Non-Filers portal, your payment status will be updated when processing is completed.
If you are an SSA or RRB Form 1099 recipient, SSI or VA benefit recipient – the IRS is working with your agency to issue your payment; your information is not available in this app yet.
According to a press briefing by U.S Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, 80 million taxpayers were expected to receive their stimulus checks by Wednesday or at the end of the week.
And for most who received their money through direct deposit from the treasury, the department had their bank details on file from the information they provided during their 2018 or 2019 tax returns.
However, there are concerns that with about 140 million taxpayers in the U.S, 60 million taxpayers are likely to be waiting for their checks and wondering when they will receive them.
And in spite of the explanation given by the IRS, some taxpayers feel that something is not adding up as they had already filed their 2019 returns but are still getting the error message. Many of these people had already received their 2019 tax refunds but are still in the dark about when they will get their stimulus checks.
For their part, the IRS has continued to assert that their website is operating smoothly and efficiently. This vague response has kept people guessing whether they are eligible for the stimulus payments or not, which adds to their frustrations.
So what can you do if you believe that you are owed all or part of the $1,200 coronavirus payment, but it has not yet shown up? Unfortunately, at this point, all you really can do is wait and occasionally check in on the IRS website.
The Internet Patrol is completely free, and reader-supported. Your tips via CashApp, Venmo, or Paypal are appreciated! Receipts will come from ISIPP.
CashApp us
Venmo us
Paypal us
