The American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law March 11. As a result, the third round of
Economic Impact Payments (EIPs or EIP3s) will start to be distributed this week. Payments will come in waves. The first group of people to receive their EIPs will be people who have filed 2019 or 2020 taxes and have their Automated Clearing House information on file with the IRS.
Information about additional waves and distribution dates have not been released.
Eligible taxpayers will automatically receive an economic impact payment of up to $1,400 for individuals or $2,800 for married couples. Please visit
IRS.gov/coronavirus for details and the latest updates.
To date, the federal government has issued payments via direct deposit, Direct Express card (used for paying federal benefits like Social Security), a prepaid debit card or physical check.
The prepaid debit cards, issued by MetaBank and on the Visa Network, are called Economic Impact Payment (EIP) Cards. Please note that if you receive an EIP Card, there are fees associated with its use. The EIP Card also comes with online account access options. You can learn more by visiting
www.eipcard.com.
If you receive your payment via direct deposit, you may notice your stimulus payment transaction initially coming across as "pending." First, financial institutions received a Treasury Department transmission which triggers the pending notification, the IRS then starts processing actual payments up to a few days later. As an electronic payment, it can then take a couple of additional days for the payment to make its way through the ACH. The payments will show as available as soon as 7 17 actually receives the funds.
Didn’t Get the First and Second Payments? Claim the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit.
All first and second Economic Impact Payments have been sent. If you didn’t get the first or second payment or didn’t get the full amount you were eligible for, you may be eligible to claim the 2020
Recovery Rebate Credit. To receive this, you must file a 2020 tax return even if you aren’t required to file.
You can check the status of your payments by visiting
IRS.gov/coronavirus. You can use the “Get my payment” function to check your payment status.
For our members that receive their payment via check, we ask that you consider using our Mobile Deposit function (within our Mobile App) for quicker service and to help eliminate long wait times in our drive-thrus. Learn more about our
Mobile Deposit and
Mobile Banking App. The use of Mobile Deposit requires a 7 17 Checking Account.
Paper checks can also be deposited at many of our ATMs.
Find a complete list of our ATMs.
Tips on using the economic impact payment
- Prioritize. Focus on the bills that keep a roof over your head, the lights on and food on the table. Many utilities and communications providers are working to waive fees, keep the power on and your internet working.
- Talk with your credit union or other lenders. Many offer low or 0%, small dollar loans, skip payments, loan modifications and other help so you can use your payment for critical needs.
- Save some of it. If you set aside $100-200, that can provide a cushion for bills that are coming in a couple of weeks.
- Don’t hoard cash. Keep it in your credit union. It’s safest there.
- Protect yourself from scams. There are a lot of fraudsters trying to manipulate the crisis to their benefit. Watch out for suspicious emails, texts or phone calls.
- Pay your taxes. The deadline for filing and paying income taxes has been extended to July 15. If you have not saved the money to pay them, you may want to consider using your economic impact payment to pay your taxes.
We want to remind our members to be mindful of fraudsters during this time. This is a payment being issued to taxpayers, so if you are told you need to send money to anyone, it is a scam. The IRS will not call and ask you to verify your payment details. Do not give out account information even if someone claims it is necessary to get your check. It is a scam. If you receive texts or emails claiming that you can get your money faster by sending personal information or by clicking links, delete them. It is a scam. Please also be mindful of bogus checks. If you get one for an odd amount, it is a scam.
If you have additional questions about your economic impact payment, visit
IRS.gov/coronavirus.
7 17 remains committed to assisting our members. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this difficult time. For the latest information from your credit union, please visit
www.717cu.com/coronavirus-planning.