Many Americans can expect to receive a $1,400 stimulus check after the Senate on Saturday narrowly approved a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, but there’s still some lingering confusion over who’s eligible and how much they’ll receive.
Under the legislation passed by the Senate, individuals earning up to $75,000, and couples up to $150,000, would get $1,400 checks per person. It halts the payments for individuals making $80,000 and couples earning $160,000.
On top of that, parents also qualify to receive up to $1,400 for each of their dependent children, including adults and college students.
So how much can you expect to get?
The American Rescue Plan calculator created by Jasmine Mah, a web developer for Omni Calculator, will figure out what your Economic Impact Payment will look like based on your tax filing status, number of dependents, adjusted gross income and whether or not you filed taxes in 2019 or 2020.
If you already know you qualify, you can use the IRS’ Get My Payment tool to check the status of your stimulus check.
U.S. residents with a social security number can qualify for a stimulus check, though certain people who didn’t file taxes recently may still receive a payment.
Mah updates the tool as new developments arise in Washington, D.C., but says some users experiencing an exceptional situation to which the calculator is not applicable can find guidance in the tool’s FAQs or in the bill itself under 2021 Recovery Rebates to Individuals.
(If the calculator doesn’t appear above, click here to view it.)
The ceilings in the Senate bill were higher in the House version, which would gradually phase down that amount, with individuals making $100,000 and couples earning $200,000 receiving nothing.
That means some people who received the last round of $600 relief checks approved in December wouldn’t get anything this time. The liberal Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimated that the pared-down Senate eligibility levels means 280 million adults and children would receive stimulus checks, compared to 297 million people under the House plan.
What’s next for the COVID-19 relief bill?
The passage of the Senate’s legislation sets up final congressional approval by the House this week so lawmakers can whisk it to President Joe Biden for his signature.
Saturday’s vote was a crucial political moment for Biden and Democrats, who need nothing short of party unanimity in a 50-50 Senate they run with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tiebreaking vote. They hold a slim 10-vote House edge.
The sprawling package was approved along a 50-49 party-line vote, with Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, missing the votes to attend his father-in-law’s funeral.
In the House, not one Republican backed the bill in the Senate or when it initially passed, underscoring the barbed partisan environment that’s characterized the early days of Biden’s presidency.
A small but pivotal band of moderate Democrats leveraged changes in the legislation that incensed progressives, hardly helping Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., guide the measure through the House. But the rejection of their first signature bill was not an option for Democrats, who face two years of running Congress with virtually no room for error.
In a significant sign, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, representing around 100 House liberals, called the Senate’s weakening of some provisions “bad policy and bad politics” but “relatively minor concessions.” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, said the bill retained its “core bold, progressive elements.”
“They feel like we do, we have to get this done,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, said of the House. He added, “It’s not going to be everything everyone wants. No bill is.”
In a written statement, Pelosi invited Republicans “to join us in recognition of the devastating reality of this vicious virus and economic crisis and of the need for decisive action.”
In addition to stimulus checks, the bill provides direct payments of up to $1,400 for most Americans and extended emergency unemployment benefits. There are vast piles of spending for COVID-19 vaccines and testing, states and cities, schools and ailing industries, along with tax breaks to help lower-earning people, families with children and consumers buying health insurance.