RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Homeless forced to wait for stimulus checks as company attributes delays to IRS Others suspect it's a scam.Īn East Bay woman threw hers in the recycle bin - then thought better of it and contacted 7 On Your Side. Eight million payments were issued on debit cards and mailed in plain white envelopes. (KGO) - Millions of Americans are now receiving their $600 stimulus payments - but many are skeptical about what they're getting in the mail.

The $1.9 trillion proposal also includes additional funds for small businesses, an increase in unemployment benefits from $300 to $400 per week, money for COVID-19 vaccination and testing and a mandate to raise the national minimum wage to $15 an hour.They come in plain white envelopes - leaving some people to mistake their economic impact payment cards as fakes. Several moderate Republican lawmakers have expressed reservations, suggesting it will be tough to get the deal through the Senate although a slim majority might be enough with some procedural maneuvering. The pandemic relief package, dubbed the American Rescue Plan, still faces significant hurdles on the path to becoming law. Under President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan, a $1,400 third round of stimulus payments could be passed by Congress by the end of March. The IRS said people could track their payments through its Get My Payments portal. Dependents who are older than 17 are not eligible for the additional payment. People with qualifying children will receive $600 for each child.

Those earning more are set to receive reduced payments. The payments are generally $600 for single people who earn less than $75,000 and $1,200 for married couples who file taxes jointly and earn less than $150,000. The IRS and the Treasury Department began delivering the second round of payments on December 29 after former President Donald Trump signed a $900 billion economic relief package on December 27. Illegal Scheme to Steal Stimulus Checks from Mail to Sell Exposed by Feds.Third Stimulus Check of $1,400 Could Be Passed by End of March.Democrat Opposes Pushing Through $1.9 Tn Stimulus Plan Without GOP Support.Take it From a Millionaire: America's Future Hinges on Decent Minimum Wage.'Some people who received a paper check last time might receive a prepaid debit card this time, and some people who received a prepaid debit card last time may receive a paper check,' the IRS said. The cards will have a Visa logo on the front and have been issued by MetaBank, which is named on the back. The debit cards are set to come in plain white envelopes with a Treasury Department seal. Government officials urged people to keep an eye on their mail. 'They think it's a scam and they discard it, when in fact, this is the actual economic impact payment,' Stokes said.Īccording to the IRS and as reported by KSL-TV, those who throw away their card cannot be issued with a second payment and will need to try to claim it when filing their tax return. Kathy Stokes, director of fraud prevention programs at the AARP, also said people were mistaking the cards for junk mail. Britta Clark with Utah's Better Business Bureau said she had heard of many others who had thrown away their cards. He is not alone in mistaking the payment for a scam.

'I didn't quite know who to trust and I get so much junk mail,' Nielsen said. When he checked with the Better Business Bureau, he was shocked to learn that it really was his stimulus payment. 'This just looked like, it was an envelope with a big window on it and it didn't say government on it anywhere,' Nielsen told KSL-TV. It arrived with 'economic stimulus' printed in the corner, prompting Nielson to say he was 'almost positive it was a scam.'Īccompanying the letter was a debit card in a nondescript envelope. Utah resident Ty Nielsen said he had received a letter in the mail on Friday, January 22. The prepaid debit card has the Visa name on the front and the issuing bank's name, MetaBank, on the back. The stimulus payment cards are being sent in a white envelope that prominently displays the Treasury Department seal.

Stimulus debit card envelope