A recent decision by the Federal Court of Claims in Washington D.C. has re-opened the filing period to receive any stimulus funds that still have not been paid out. The decision is called Kwong v. United States.
The federal government issued “Economic Income Payments” or stimulus funds for the 2020 and 2021 tax years. These payments were made by mailing checks or debit cards, or by depositing the funds in Social Security accounts or taxpayer bank accounts. Some people did not receive their stimulus funds because they had not filed returns in previous years or the IRS did not know how to contact them.
Those people that did not receive the initial rounds of stimulus funds needed to file a 2020 or 2021 federal tax return and request the stimulus funds as a tax refund. A taxpayer normally has three years from the due date of a return to request a refund, so it was previously believed that the deadline for requesting the stimulus funds had expired in 2025.
The recent decision in Kwong, however, states that the deadline to file to file the 2020-2022 federal returns was extended to July 10, 2026 due to various pandemic related delays. So people who still need to file for the stimulus refunds now have until July 10, 2026 to do so.
Please note that the IRS is appealing this decision and it may be overturned in the future. If you are still eligible to receive the stimulus funds however, you should file the needed returns by the deadline to safeguard your claim.
You can file your return with a trusted tax preparer or on your own at the IRS website, www.irs.gov. There are also online tax preparation services that you can purchase. If you cannot afford a tax preparer, you can call “Volunteer Income Tax Assistance” (VITA) for possible assistance. This is a non-profit organization where trained tax professionals help low income taxpayers file their tax returns for free. Call the toll free number 1-800-906-9887 to find out if there are any programs are operating in your area. If you are 60 years old or older, you can call the AARP toll free at 1-888-227-7669 to find out about possible assistance.