Stimulus Checks And Your Taxes - What Tax Experts Say You Need To Know

Tax season is here and this year things are a little more complicated because of the stimulus money many people have received.

Rachel Mathew with Polston Tax Resolution and Consulting says first, for those who did not receive the stimulus check but should have, you can report it on your 2020 tax return. The IRS will send you a check for that money if you qualify for receiving it.

Next, Mathew says there is a new round of stimulus money that is coming out. This one is based on your 2020 tax return.

You qualify for stimulus money if you file single and your income was less than $75,000 or if you are married and your combined income is less than $150,000. If you qualify you want to get that 2020 tax return filed as soon as possible.

On the other hand, if your income has changed and you are concerned you may now not qualify, Mathew says it could be a good idea to hold off on filing that return.

“So if you don’t file your 2020 tax return they will base it on your 2019 and they will send you a stimulus check and I don’t know how it is going to work on the back end if your income was actually higher in 2020 if you will pay it back," says Mathew

Mathew says that if your tax return is very straight forward go ahead and use one of the free tax services yourself.

"If you just have W2 income and you are not itemizing your deductions and you don't have dependents I would say you probably have a straightforward tax return. You can just claim your wages off of your W2. You can do one of those free online tax returns," says Mathew.

But if you have any questions or deductions, using a service like hers can be very beneficial to get you the most money.

"A tax professional is going to make sure you are claiming everything that you can to write off everything that you can on your tax return and reduce how much you have to pay in taxes," says Mathew

She adds that she takes an aggressive approach for her clients and says that she believes everyone should pay the taxes they owe but not a penny more.

For more information on Polston Tax or if you have any questions visit https://polstontax.com/ or email Rachel at Rachel.Mathew@polstontax.com