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In response to
"Not as concerned about the amount of the payment as I am curious about which tax year's credit it is an advance payment of. -- (edited)"
by
znufrii
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Not sure about this one. The spring payment was credit for 2020 taxes. I copied this response to a question from the..wait for it...
Posted by
zunkskunk+ (aka zunkskunk)
Dec 29 '20, 20:35
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Fidelity website. The tone is amusing.
Dear Candace,
Is the stimulus package fair? Is the COVID-19 pandemic fair? Has 2020 been fair to families and elderly relatives who have been isolated? Is it fair that businesses and restaurants have closed, and office blocks have emptied out? Is it fair that some people lived, while others died? Is it fair for 12 million people to be unemployed in a year that has wrought so much turmoil? Is it fair that we were born in Europe or the U.S. or Syria or Liberia? Life on earth is not based on fairness.
The government had to find a way to distribute the $2.2 trillion CARES Act to help people who were living paycheck to paycheck, losing their homes, or struggling to put food on the table. It gave a good first pass at being fair. Using 2019 tax returns to assess whether people qualified or not was the fastest and most efficient strategy. **The stimulus checks are an advance on a 2020 tax credit.** But because millions of people had not filed their returns in March, the IRS used their 2019 returns in lieu of 2020.
Was it imperfect? Of course it was imperfect. There was no and is no perfect solution. Adding to the complexity: If people did not file their 2019 tax returns by last March, the government used their 2018 returns as a proxy as a guide in order to determine their earnings. People making over $99,000 per year, and married couples making above $198,000 per year did not receive a payment. Some folks who lost their job this year, but who earned far more last year, did not receive a stimulus.
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Responses:
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