Can you stand one more "stimulus package" question?

[Janna]

My brother in law just called. He was saying that he got his stimulus check but that it was short what he was expecting. He has 3 children, ages 17, 15 and 7. He said that since the one was 17, he couldn't get the $300 for her. But then he also said that he didn't get the $600 for his wife because she only made $2500 last year. Even though they filed jointly, because she made less than $3000, they got $600 rather than $1200. So his total check was $1200 when he was expecting $1800 ($600 for him, $600 for the 2 younger kids).

 

So for those of us who are SAHM's, obviously we're not making $3000+. Even if our dh's filed jointly, is that correct that it will be $600 rather than $1200 for us? My understanding was that the $600 was for filing individually, and then only if you made $3000 and over. I didn't realize it was for married couples also.

 

We obviously haven't received our check yet, and I'm not sure when we will. Dh's last 2 digits are in the last grouping. I'm thinking it will be this Fri. because they bumped things up a week, but I don't know.

 

What say you?

[Mrs Mungo]

We received $1200 as a couple and $300 per child. I don't work outside the home.

 

eta from the irs faq site http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=179181,00.html:

. I received my stimulus payment, but it was less than what my friends and neighbors received. Why?

A. Your economic stimulus payment will be based on information provided on your 2007 income tax return.

Many, but not all, taxpayers qualify for the maximum basic payment of $600 for singles or $1,200 for married couples. Many parents are also receiving an additional $300 for each qualifying child, born after Dec. 31, 1990.

Your payment may be less than the maximum for one or more of the following reasons:

• You are single and your net income tax liability is less than $600. If you file Form 1040 net income tax liability is the amount shown on Line 57, plus the amount on Line 52.
  
• You are married and your net income tax liability is less than $1,200.
  
• You are single and your adjusted gross income (AGI) is more than $75,000. On Form 1040, AGI is the amount on Line 37.
  
• You are married filing a joint return and your AGI is more than $150,000.
  
• You owe back taxes.
  
• You have non-tax federal debts such as unpaid student loans or child-support obligations.

Around the same time you receive your payment, you will receive a notice from the IRS explaining how your payment was figured. It is important to keep this notice as a record of your economic stimulus payment. In addition, you’ll get a separate notice if you owe back taxes or non-tax debts.

[Ohio12]

"We received $1200 as a couple and $300 per child. I don't work outside the home."

 

same here:iagree:

[Claire]

Could it have been reduced because their adjusted gross income was too high? According to this IRS website, a married couple filing jointly are eligible for $1200 unless the AGI is above the limits.

[LibraryLover]

"We received $1200 as a couple and $300 per child. I don't work outside the home."

 

same here:iagree:

Same here, but the 19 year old didn't count! I thought he would because he is a student. Dang.

[Maura in NY]

$1200 plus $300 per child, filed jointly, no income from me.

 

I also read that the individual amount would be between $300 & $600 per person depending on income. My guess is that your bil and his wife got $300 a piece, rather than $600 for him.

[Janna]

No. They make very little money - which is why he's upset about it. They really, REALLY could have used that extra $600. But I don't know how they filed, I don't know if they owe taxes...I don't know anything. Only the info that he gave me which was what I posted. I thought it was interesting and hadn't heard that was happening, so I'm glad to know that married, filing jointly, even if the spouse doesn't work, will for the most part, get $1200.

[Brenda in FL]

No. They make very little money - .

 

It may be that they fall under the income tax liability of less than $1,200 as Mrs. Mungo added to her post. I know when my dh made very little money, with three kids we basically had to pay no income tax.

[magic]

There is a calculator on the IRS site that allows you to see how much you should get. It is based on the adjusted gross income, taxes paid, and number of dependants.

[KidsHappen]

He claims himself and my mom (she lived with him). She passed away in Feb this year but that should have had no effect on his taxes last year. He has always got a deduction for her in the past. He did not get the letter explaining the check yet, just a auto deposit. He does not owe any money to the government and his income is not over the limit so at this point we don't know why he got less than he expected. We haven't got ours yet so I have no idea what ours will be. We are expecting $1200 for us and $300 per child for all children under 18 still living at home. Guess we will see.

[kat19]

but we didn't, we did get 300 for the 2 kids, third child didn't count since he was born this year. And we(meaning my hubby since I don't work) don't make much more than $30,000 a year.

I was disappointed because we need the money now to get our car fixed and to buy curriculum..but I'm glad we got some :001_smile:

If you go the IRS website and do the calculator it will tell you exactly how much you will get.

[WagsWife]

It also has to do with how much you "paid" in taxes. The rebate is refunding *up to $1200 for couples...however if you did not pay that much in, you will not get that much back. We only "paid" about $900 in taxes, so we only get $900 as a couple.

I use quotations around paid because we did not pay anything out of our pocket...in fact we received a refund, but our refund was $900 less because of the tax we owed...that is what we should receive back in the rebate.

[LaMere Academy]

Now I'm worried about how much we'll get back. I'm expecting $2,400.

I tried the calculator thingy and we're not even showing up on it. I can't remember our exemptions though but I've tried 0 up to 20 and it still isn't showing up.

[Just Me]

Now I'm worried about how much we'll get back. I'm expecting $2,400.

I tried the calculator thingy and we're not even showing up on it. I can't remember our exemptions though but I've tried 0 up to 20 and it still isn't showing up.

 

We aren't showing up on it either, which I am a little concerned about. But nothing I read leads me to believe that we won't get one, so I am just hoping it will show up soon! :)