By July 15, the $300 Child Tax Credit money should have entered over 36 million bank accounts of eligible families. If the money is not there, then you should quickly take action.
The proposed child tax credit money that aims to help families with their child care expenses has officially came out from the IRS treasury last Thursday. Eligible families received their first wave of $300 monthly recurring payments, scheduled to drop every 15th of the month (excluding August since it's a Sunday).
People with registered bank accounts should have received the $300 for July within these last few days. Unfortunately, numerous people find their money missing instead.
If you are one of those who have their money missing, listed below are a few steps you can follow to get the money back.
5. Check the Amount Using Child Tax Credit Calculators
First, how much money are you supposed to receive? These online calculators can estimate how much you are supposed to get.
Child Tax Credit money will be sent, higher or lower than the estimated $300, depending on eligibility and number of dependents. It is also possible that the IRS withheld your money to pay back overdue bills like unpaid federal tax, loans and other similar debts.
4. Open the Child Tax Credit Portal
If you have child tax credit money credited to your name, you can check its delivery status through the IRS Child Tax Credit Portal.
Cnet said that the Child Tax Credit Portal provides all IRS-related transactions, including monthly payment history. To see this information, you'll need either an IRS account or an ID.me account.
To check on the payment, scroll down the account details and search for a transaction labeled "CHILDCTC." A date of deposit should be provided. If the transaction does not appear, then your bank did not receive any money from the IRS.
Take this moment to double-check on all your information listed in the IRS database. The money might have been sent to the wrong address or bank account.
3. Register to Informed Delivery
For eligible recipients who do not have bank accounts (or have their bank accounts closed), the IRS will send the money through a paper check. This method takes seven or more delivery days.
Try registering to USPS Informed Delivery service. Informed Delivery will update you with details for ongoing deliveries under your name, including an estimated date of arrival.
2. Child Tax Credit Eligibility
After going through these steps and no money is reflected on your account, then maybe you are not eligible for Child Tax Credit payments.
Child Tax Credit payments have a strict set of eligibility requirements for the money. Aside from your adjusted gross income (AGI) and 2020 tax return, dependents receiving the money also have eligibility requirements. You can check this article for more details.
1. Child Tax Credit $3600 Lump Sum
Lastly, you can also consider opting out of these monthly recurring payments. Doing so gives you the chance to get the Child Tax Credit money in a $3600 lump sum. Note, however, that the lump sum would only be released after the submission of 2021 Tax Returns.
Related Article: Tax Refund Schedule for July 2021: How to Use 'Where's My Amended Return?' Tool, File for Form 1099-G to Know Your Payment
