If you don’t file your tax return for the year 2021 and have not yet seen the pandemic stimulus check, then the time is running out. According to the IRS, a tax refund can only be made claims within three years of the said event, making the 2021 returns deadline under this limit April 15, 2025.
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You can still claim your 2021 $1,400 Stimulus Payment.
If a taxpayer did receive the maximum amount of $1,400 stimulus payment given in 2021, they can still claim it through the “Recovery Rebate Credit,” which should then be entered in that year’s return.
According to Robert Nassau, a tax professional and professor at Syracuse University, “If you haven’t received the stimulus yet, time is running out.”
IRS ‘special payments’ in December
The IRS announced that in December 2024, it will automatically send a payment of up to $1,400 directly to about one million taxpayers nationwide who had not requested the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns.
The destination for those payments would be direct bank deposits or checks sent through the mail with thousands likely to be received by paper checks at the end of January 2025, provided the taxpayer filed his/her 2023 return on time.
How do I check whether the IRS sent a payment?
The IRS states that you will find out for sure whether you did or did not get a stimulus payment by creating an online account from the official IRS site. Visit the site and search for “Tax Records” in the “Records and Status” section.
- That is indeed the best place to see whether or not payment went to you.
Financial planner Tommy Lucas also added, “By logging into your IRS account, you can see if you filed your 2021 return or not.”
You miss lots of other tax benefits.
The IRS also states that if you don’t file your 2021 return by April 15, 2025, you won’t just lose a stimulus check; you’ll lose out on other credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), which might even refund those people with no taxes owed.
More than $1 billion in refunds are left unclaimed.
According to IRS reports in March of 2025, taxpayers, up to that period, had failed to claim over $1 billion in refunds meant for taxpayers in the 2021 tax year.
- This involves 1.1 million taxpayers.
- So far, the average refund is just under $781.
- Recovery Rebate Credit does not figure here.
Simply put, this means millions have not claimed money due to them, in most cases because they have not filed.
Proof of Filing a Return Is Important
Professor Nassau warns that if you cannot file taxes electronically for any reason, you need to mail your tax return.
He said, “The IRS sometimes rejects documents if they are received late. So spend the $5 and send it by certified mail so you have proof that you filed on time.”
Free Tax Filing Options Are Open
There are several free options this tax season, with some, as advised by Professor Nassau, not e-filing for the 2021 returns.
- Check that you can do a 2021 return using your tax software or service.
Conclusion: Here is your chance. Do not miss it.
Most Americans may not know they qualify for the 2021 stimulus and can still claim it. That opportunity runs until April 15, 2025.
Now, if you haven’t yet, do your 2021 return ASAP so you can:
- Receive a $1,400 stimulus payment.
- Claim your other tax credits.
- Receive your check.
- Uncle Sam should not keep your money.
FAQs
Q1. What does “running out of time” mean in this context?
A. It means there is a deadline approaching for people to claim their missing or unclaimed IRS stimulus checks. After the deadline, they may lose the chance to get that money.
Q2. Who is eligible to claim a missing IRS stimulus check?
A. People who didn’t receive one or more stimulus payments (from 2020 or 2021) but were eligible based on their income and filing status.
Q3. What is the deadline to claim the 2020 stimulus payment?
A. The deadline to file a 2020 tax return and claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit is May 17, 2024 (3 years after the original due date of May 17, 2021).