2020 Recovery Rebate Credit — Topic E: Receiving the Credit on a 2020 tax return

A1. If you didn’t qualify for the first and second Economic Impact Payments or did not receive the full amounts, you may be eligible to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit based on your 2020 tax information. 

If you are eligible for the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, the credit amount will reduce the amount of tax you owe for 2020. Generally, if the Recovery Rebate Credit amount is more than the tax you owe, it will be included as part of your 2020 tax refund.  

You will receive your 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit included in your refund after your 2020 tax return is processed. If you requested a trace on your first or second Economic Impact Payment and the trace confirms you did not receive the payment, the IRS will adjust the amount of Recovery Rebate Credit claimed on your 2020 tax return and will send any overpayment. 

The 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet in the 2020 Form 1040 and Form1040-SR Instructions PDF can help you determine if you may be eligible to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit.

See the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit FAQs — Topic A: Claiming the Recovery Rebate Credit if you aren’t required to file a tax return.

If your 2020 tax return has been processed and you didn't claim the credit on your return or request a trace, but are eligible for the credit, you must file an amended return to claim it. See the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit FAQs — Topic G: Correcting issues after the 2020 tax return is filed.

A2. As of March 18, 2021, the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount will no longer be applied to past due federal income tax debts.

Generally, tax refunds are applied to tax you owe on your return or your outstanding federal income tax liability. If you are eligible for a 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, and your 2020 return reflects a tax refund, the refund amount associated with the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit will not be applied to a federal income tax liability.

A3. Yes, the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit can be reduced to pay debts owed to other federal government agencies (separate from federal income tax debt) as well as to state agencies. Keep in mind that the credit is part of your 2020 tax refund and your tax refund is subject to any offset.

A4. Generally, a credit increases the amount of your tax refund or decreases the amount of taxes owed. Your 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit will reduce the amount of tax you owe for 2020 or, if the credit is more than the tax you owe, it will be included as part of your 2020 tax refund.  See Q E3 regarding potential offsets of your 2020 tax refund.  

The fastest way to get your tax refund is to have it direct deposited - contactless and free - into your financial account. You can use a bank account, prepaid debit card or mobile app for your direct deposit and will need to provide routing and account numbers.

A5. Claiming the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit on your tax return will not delay the processing of your 2020 tax return. If you claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit on line 30 and miscalculate the amount of credit you are eligible to receive, the IRS will adjust your return and send a notice explaining the changes made. Your refund may be delayed while we make any necessary corrections.

To figure the credit amount, you will need to know the amount(s) of any first or second Economic Impact Payments you received. You can find your Economic Impact Payment amounts at IRS.gov/account. You may also refer to Notice 1444, Your Economic Impact Payment, which shows the amount of the first EIP and Notice 1444-B PDF, which shows the amount of the second EIP.

The Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet in the 2020 Form 1040 and Form1040-SR Instructions PDF can also help determine if you are eligible for the credit.

The fastest way to get your tax refund is to have it direct deposited - contactless and free - into your financial account. You can use a bank account, prepaid debit card or mobile app for your direct deposit and will need to provide routing and account numbers.

A6. You may be able to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit if you can establish in writing that the return was signed under duress, your signature was forged, the return was filed without your consent, or you were not legally married at the end of the year on which the first or second payment was based. The first and second payments were generally issued based on information from the 2019 return but were issued based on information from the 2018 return if a 2019 had not been filed or processed by the IRS when the payments were made. 

To show that you could not resist your spouse’s demands and signed under duress, you can provide written documentation to support your claim that the joint election was invalid. You may submit a separate return for the prior year if you had a filing requirement or provide a statement signed and sworn under penalties of perjury that you didn’t need to file a tax return for the prior year or that the return was filed without your consent.

A7. No, if you qualified for a first or second payment based on your 2018 or 2019 tax returns, the law doesn’t require you to pay back all or part of the payment you received based on the information reported on your  2020 tax return.

A8. Yes. We’ll determine if reducing your AGI by the unemployment compensation exclusion now makes you eligible for the credit or for more of the credit if you received less than the full amount. If eligible, we’ll calculate the correct credit amount for you and send it to you by direct deposit or as a paper check if the result is a refund.

For additional information about the unemployment compensation exclusion, see Tax Treatment of Unemployment Compensation.

A9. If you received your payment by check and it was lost, stolen or destroyed, you should contact the IRS as soon as possible to request a payment trace so the IRS can determine if your payment was cashed. See How do I request a payment trace to track my first or second Economic Impact Payments?

If a trace is initiated and it is determined you did not receive the payment, the IRS will update your account to indicate you did not receive the payment, but the IRS cannot reissue your payment. Instead, you must claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 tax return if eligible. If you already filed your 2020 tax return and the trace is complete confirming that you did not receive the payment, the IRS will adjust your 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit even if you entered $0 on line 30 or left it blank. After your 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit is adjusted, you will be sent a check for any overpayment and a letter explaining the change.

You have two options if you are filing a 2020 tax return and believe you did not receive the amount of EIP IRS indicates you received:

1. Use the amounts reported by the IRS on Notice 1444 for the first payment and Notice 1444-B for the second payment (or the payment amounts in your IRS Online Account) to calculate the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on line 30. Separately contact the IRS to trace the payment amounts you did not receive. Once the payment trace is completed, you and the IRS will receive notification of the account where the payment was sent and the amount or a copy of the cashed check.
2. Use the amount of first and second payments you believe you received to calculate the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on line 30. If your calculation does not match the IRS calculation, the processing of the return will be delayed, the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount will be adjusted to match IRS records and you will receive a notice that includes a telephone number to contact if you disagree with the change to the return. If you contact the IRS and disagree with the changes made, IRS will conduct a trace of payment, if necessary. Once the payment trace is completed, you and the IRS will receive notification of the account where the payments were sent and the amounts or a copy of the cased check.

When you receive the results of the payment trace:

• • If the payment trace indicates the first and second payment amounts were sent by direct deposit to your account and were not returned to the IRS, the first and second payments will not be reissued, and no further action is necessary.
  • If the payment trace indicates that a check was cashed, the Treasury Department's Bureau of the Fiscal Service will send you a claim package that includes a copy of the cashed check. Follow the instructions for completing the claim package if the check is not signed by you.
  • If the payment trace results in a direct deposit being returned to the IRS or indicates you didn't cash the check for a first or second payment amount, the IRS will adjust the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on the return and issue any overpayment.

A10. If your payment was issued as a direct deposit, your first step is to check with your bank and make sure they didn't receive a deposit.

You should only request a payment trace to track your payment if you received a notice saying a payment was issued to you or your Online Account shows payment amount greater than $0 and you have not received a payment. Do not request a payment trace to determine if you were eligible for a payment or to confirm the amount of payment you should have received.

Note: If you have a foreign address, there may be international service disruptions at the United States Postal Service (USPS) or the foreign country you are in due to the COVID-19 pandemic. See the USPS Service Alerts page and check with your local consulate for more information.

The fastest way to initiate a trace is to contact the IRS by calling us at 800-919-9835.

How we process your claim

We'll process your claim for a missing payment in one of two ways:

• If a trace is initiated and the IRS determines that the check wasn't cashed or a payment was not deposited into an account held by you and your spouse, the IRS will credit your account for that payment, but the IRS cannot reissue your payment. Instead, you will need to claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 tax return if eligible.
• If the check was cashed or the payment was issued, the Treasury Department's Bureau of the Fiscal Service will send you a claim package. Follow the instructions for completing the claim package. The Treasury Department's Bureau of the Fiscal Service will review your claim before determining whether the payment can be reversed, and your 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit adjusted.

Note: If you are filing your 2020 tax return before your trace is complete, you have two options when completing the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet:

1. Use the amounts reported by the IRS on Notice 1444 for the first payment and Notice 1444-B for the second payment (or the payment amounts in your IRS Online Account) to calculate the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on line 30. Separately contact the IRS to trace the payment amounts you did not receive. Once the payment trace is completed, you and the IRS will receive notification of the account where the payment was sent and the amount or a copy of the cashed check.

2. Use the amount of first and second payments you believe you received to calculate the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on line 30. If your calculation does not match the IRS calculation, the processing of the return will be delayed, the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount will be adjusted to match IRS records and you will receive a notice that includes a telephone number to contact if you disagree with the change to the return. If you contact the IRS and disagree with the changes made, IRS will conduct a trace of payment, if necessary. Once the payment trace is completed, you and the IRS will receive notification of the account where the payments were sent and the amounts or a copy of the cash check.

When you receive the results of the payment trace:

• • If the payment trace indicates the first and second payment amount were sent by direct deposit to your account and were not returned to the IRS, the first and second payment will not be reissued, and no further action is necessary.
  • If the payment trace indicates that a check was cashed, the Treasury Department's Bureau of the Fiscal Service will send you a claim package that includes a copy of the cashed check. Follow the instructions for completing the claim package if the check is not signed by you.
  • If the payment trace results in a direct deposit being returned to the IRS or indicates you didn't cash the check for a first or second payment amount, the IRS will adjust the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit amount on the return and issue any overpayment.

If you are unable to contact us by phone to initiate a trace, you can mail or fax a completed Form 3911, Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund PDF.

Reminder: DO NOT request a trace if you did not receive a notice stating a payment was issued to you or your Online Account does not show a payment was issued.

To complete the Form 3911:

• Write "EIP1" or "EIP2" on the top of the form to identify the payment you want to trace.
• Complete the form answering all refund questions as they relate to your Economic Impact Payment.
• When completing item 7 under Section 1:
  • Check the box for "Individual" as the Type of return
  • Enter "2020" as the Tax Period
  • Do not write anything for the Date Filed
• Sign the form. If you file married filing jointly, both spouses must sign the form.

You will generally receive a response 6 weeks after we receive your request for a payment trace, but there may be delays due to limited staffing. Get up-to-date status on affected IRS operations and services. Do not mail or fax Form 3911 if you have already requested a trace by phone.

Mail or fax the form to:

Note: Do not send anything other than a Form 3911 to the fax numbers below.