Stimulus Payments below 600

[maat55]

If you receive less than the 600 you thought you were getting, it's because the tax you paid in for 2007 was less than 600.

My daughter and son-in-law, after deductions, payed 818.00 in tax, so they only received 818.00 in stimulus.

[irmanator]

then why are they tell ing the sr. cit who don't normally have to file to file so they will get stimulus?

[cooliemae]

If you receive less than the 600 you thought you were getting, it's because the tax you paid in for 2007 was less than 600.

My daughter and son-in-law, after deductions, payed 818.00 in tax, so they only received 818.00 in stimulus.

I am assuming that your daughter and son-in-law made more than the $150,000 cap, in which case their combined $1200 rebate would be reduced according to how money they grossed over the $150,000 cap.

-->irmanator

If you don't file your 2007 taxes, you will not receive a stimulus rebate this year.

The 2007 taxes are actually serving as an estimate for your 2008 taxes, which is what the rebate is actually based on.

So senior citizens, who didn't file their taxes this year, will have a chance to get their rebate checks next year, but they will have to file.

And if you, say have a child during 2008, then you will receive the $300 rebate for the child next year.

[moneybags]

I am assuming that your daughter and son-in-law made more than the $150,000 cap, in which case their combined $1200 rebate would be reduced according to how money they grossed over the $150,000 cap.

If they only paid $818 taxes on over $150,000, I want to go to their tax accountant. The OP was correct in her original explanation. You won't get more than you paid for '07, unless it was less than the minimum rebate (i.e. 300 for singles, then you get the $300).

then why are they tell ing the sr. cit who don't normally have to file to file so they will get stimulus?

So they can get the minimum rebate amount.

[jodi]

Can someone help me understand my rebate then? DH and I are married, filing jointly, with two dependents. AGI was $39,312. We owed $1503 in taxes plus $787 in SE tax (total: $2290). Of that, we had $97 withheld and received the child tax credit ($1201), which brought the total down to $992. Additionally, we received the education credit ($304), child tax credit ($799), and retirement savings contribution credit ($400), which amounted to an additional $1503, meaning we got $511 back.
Turbo Tax estimated a $1398 tax rebate for us and - of course - they were right (I received it yesterday). I just cannot figure out why. When I run the numbers through an online calculator, it says we should be getting the full amount ($1800). Since we owed more than the rebate in taxes, shouldn't we be getting the full amount? I'm trying to figure out if all these credits figure into the rebate...just curious!

[jodi]

Well, I've been playing around with the actual IRS rebate estimator, and it's giving me the $1398 amount that I received. It all comes down to these two questions:

Enter the amount of Child Tax Credit (Form 1040, Line 52):
Enter the amount of tax after credits (Form 1040, Line 57):

When I change the amounts I put in here, I get a different answer (from $0-1800), so apparently it comes down to how much you owed in taxes after your credits were calculated (we owed $0). I'd still like to know how this is fugured for my own curiousity...but at least I'm more confident that it's correct now!

[moneybags]

Do they show a breakout of what was paid for your kids? Maybe you only got a portion of the kids $$ because your child tax credit was lower than the usual $1000/kid???? Just a guess.

[irs]

Additional Amounts for Qualifying Child: If you qualify for the basic amount, you may receive an additional $300 for each qualifying child. To qualify, a child must be younger than age 17 and have a valid Social Security number.

Phase Out: Your payment is reduced, or you may receive no payment at all based on your income level. The stimulus payment begins to phase out for individuals with adjusted gross incomes (AGI) over $75,000 and married couples who file a joint return with AGI over $150,000. The combined payment is reduced by 5 percent of the income above the AGI thresholds. Your AGI is the amount shown on:

* Form 1040, Line 37
* Form 1040A, Line 21, or
* Form 1040EZ, Line 4

[aida2003]

Additional Amounts for Qualifying Child: If you qualify for the basic amount, you may receive an additional $300 for each qualifying child.

What's 'the basic amount'? Is it $1k/kid?

I've got a question about the second child that we'll have in 2008.
Can we anticipate another full $300 for him in 2009 as long our AGI is below $150k for 2008? But if it's more than the threshold (not in our case), that $300 amount would be diminished, correct?

[vsjhoc]

I've got a question about the second child that we'll have in 2008.
Can we anticipate another full $300 for him in 2009 as long our AGI is below $150k for 2008? But if it's more than the threshold (not in our case), that $300 amount would be diminished, correct?

The stimulus payment is a one-time payment paid in 2008 based on your income, taxes, filing status, and dependents in 2007. There is currently no provision for a stimulus payment to be made in 2009 for 2008. Unless the new Prez decides otherwise.

[savingmama]

then why are they tell ing the sr. cit who don't normally have to file to file so they will get stimulus?

Senior citizens who get social security normally don't have to file taxes because they don't pay taxes on social security. But for the stimulus plan, their social secuirty amount (if greater than $3000 for the year) qualifies them for the tax rebate. But only those who file taxes get the rebate, so hence sr cit have to file even if they don't have taxes if they want the rebate.

[savingmama]

Can someone help me understand my rebate then? DH and I are married, filing jointly, with two dependents. AGI was $39,312. We owed $1503 in taxes plus $787 in SE tax (total: $2290). Of that, we had $97 withheld and received the child tax credit ($1201), which brought the total down to $992. Additionally, we received the education credit ($304), child tax credit ($799), and retirement savings contribution credit ($400), which amounted to an additional $1503, meaning we got $511 back.
Turbo Tax estimated a $1398 tax rebate for us and - of course - they were right (I received it yesterday). I just cannot figure out why. When I run the numbers through an online calculator, it says we should be getting the full amount ($1800). Since we owed more than the rebate in taxes, shouldn't we be getting the full amount? I'm trying to figure out if all these credits figure into the rebate...just curious!

First, you got $600 for the kids ($300 for each kid). There is no rule that would reduce that amount of money. So that leaves $798 that you and your husband qualified for, which means that must be what your tax liability was on your 2007 taxes. You said you owed $1503 in taxes (The SE tax probably doesn't count toward the total). However, your education credit ($304) and retirement credit ($400) reduce your tax liability. Unlike the child tax credit, these credits only used to reduce taxes- not like Child Tax credit, or EIC where you can actually get money back. So taking the $1503 in taxes minus the $304 and the $400, the amount of taxes you paid is $799. $799 plus $600 is $1399 and that would be tax rebate. That is the closest I could come to $1398.

[jodi]

Thanks savingmama! We received a notice by mail the day after I posted this original question which had the breakdown, but it still didn't specify how they came up with that number. Your explanation made perfect sense. I appreciate you taking the time to help me figure this out

[aida2003]

The stimulus payment is a one-time payment paid in 2008 based on your income, taxes, filing status, and dependents in 2007. There is currently no provision for a stimulus payment to be made in 2009 for 2008. Unless the new Prez decides otherwise.

Well, I keep getting different answers on this. One of them said that it's an advance rebate on 2008 taxes, but in order to speed them up the gov't is using 2007 income and then there'll be an adjustment in 2009. So, I've been told several times on other forums that I may expect another $300 for the second child.
However, I don't include it in my tax planning because I'm sceptical about it.