Child Tax Credit Payment Tracker: What to Do If You Received $300 by Mistake!

The first payment for the monthly Child Tax Credit officially came out on July 15. However, people are reporting many issues and problems. Some eligible families did not receive the money, while others who are not eligible get mailed with payments. Here is what you should do with the Child Tax Credit mistakes

The child tax credit money is a popular topic for most families today. Depending on eligibility, like adjusted gross income (AGI) and the number of dependents, families can get more or less $300 every 15th of the month starting July until December.

Earlier reports said that some eligible families have received their child tax credit money last Thursday and Friday. Unfortunately, many issues were found in the program. Some found the money they received was lacking compared to IRS estimates, while others never even received the money. A select few also reported that, despite not being eligible, the child tax credit payment was successfully delivered to their banks.

Why Didn't You Receive the Child Tax Credit Payment?

Online tools are now available to check on eligibility and child tax credit payment delivery status.

Note that the IRS uses the 2019 or 2020 Tax Returns to get your personal information. None-filers are unfortunately exempted from the child tax credit payment. To register for future payments, you can use this online non-filer portal.

Afterward, you need to open an account on the IRS website or ID.me. Your eligibility status for the child tax credit will be seen in the profile account, along with the child tax credit amount that IRS is supposed to pay you.

You can check if the payment was issued or if it is still being processed in your bank account. Child tax credit payment transactions will have the company name "IRS TREAS 310" and the description "CHILDCTC." Do not confuse these transactions with stimulus checks (TAXEIP3) or tax refunds (TAX REF).

Lastly, child tax credit payments are also being sent out by paper checks and mail delivery. It could take around seven days, so others might have to wait until July 22 to receive their money.

What to Do If You Received $300 Child Tax Credit by Mistake!

As previously mentioned, some families received the child tax credit money despite not being eligible. Specifically, their IRS online account shows that they are "Not Eligible," but the money still entered into their bank accounts.

Cnet noted that the money should be returned to the IRS. The article, however, did not elaborate on the consequences and did not provide deadlines. IRS remains silent on these issues, not confirming or denying these "mistake payments."

If you are positive that you're not eligible, the first thing you can do is head to the IRS Update portal and "Unenroll from future payments." This will help prevent you from getting into a bigger hassle against the IRS.

Tech difficulties are a common occurrence for some websites. IRS seems to be busy sending out these child tax credit payments that they might have failed to regulate eligibility requirements. More updates on the topic might be released in the coming days.