Are you a US citizen living in Canada? Did you file a US tax return? US citizens are required to file personal tax returns regardless of your residency. Here is another reason to file….
Funds may be available to you, The US government provided economic stimulus payments ranging from $600 to $1,800 in 2020 with an additional payment up to $1,400 in 2021 for each individual US taxpayer and twice these amounts for joint filers in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of three Economic Impact Payments were issued during 2020 and 2021 for those individuals that met eligibility requirements.
To be eligible, you must be a US citizen or US permanent resident, have a valid Social Security Number (SSN), and have adjusted gross income below $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for joint filers. No application for the payments were required, only that previous US tax returns had been filed. As well, most seniors and retirees were also eligible for the stimulus payments.
If you did not receive any of the Economic Impact Payments, you may be eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit when filing your 2020 and 2021 US federal tax returns.
The adjusted gross income test for eligibility for the third stimulus payment will be revisited when 2021 tax returns are filed. This means that those considered ineligible based on their income in 2019 and 2020, may be eligible for the third stimulus payment if their adjusted gross income has dropped sufficiently during 2021.
Note that you do not need to reside in the US to be eligible for these payments. Our clients, that are US citizens in Canada, have successfully received eligible unpaid US Economic Impact Payments when filing their tax returns.
Need help? Contact us to discuss your eligibility and filing requirements. The experienced team of professionals at Ernst and Company CPA are available for personalized assistance.
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