4 significant reasons for filing your taxes as soon as possible

Sure, you have until April 15 to file your 2020 federal tax return, but we have four good reasons to file now — beyond ridding yourself of the stress of having your taxes hanging over your head. Here’s a hint: Your taxes play a helpful role this year, in addition to determining the size of your tax refund, if you get one. They’re also a huge factor in calculating and receiving your stimulus check money.

Getting your taxes filed could be your ticket to finally receiving the first or second stimulus payment if you’re one of the millions who qualified for a check but didn’t receive all the money — even if it was a clerical error or some other issue that caused your check to never arrive. Some people had problems with custody and child support or missing money for child dependents in general. Others had funds accidentally garnished. Filing your taxes as soon as possible could help you claim missing stimulus payment money ASAP, regardless of why it wasn’t delivered.

About 8 million nonfilers will also have to file a tax return this year to get their stimulus payment, but there are also benefits for the tens of millions of people who’ll be eligible for a third stimulus payment of up to $1,400 per person — a stimulus check that may arrive sooner than you think. By filing now, you could also set yourself up so you don’t have to wait until 2022 to claim any additional stimulus money from check No. 3. We’ll explain what you need to know. And here’s more information about stimulus checks and your 2020 taxes and when it’s time to contact the IRS or set up a payment trace if your money doesn’t show up. This story was recently updated.

4 benefits of filing your taxes early in 2021

Benefit 1: The earlier you file your taxes, the sooner you’ll get your tax refund (you can estimate the total here). That’s one great reason to file early every year.

Benefit 2: Since any missing stimulus check money is also tied to your tax return this time around, filing early will mean you get any missing stimulus money faster, too. If you’re owed a tax refund and stimulus money, both will arrive as part of the same payment. For example, let’s say your tax refund was $500 and your stimulus check allotment was $500. You’d receive one $1,000 payment from the US Treasury. 

(If you’re on the hook for taxes but you’re owed stimulus check money, the amount you have to fork over will be reduced. So, if you were to owe $1,000 in taxes and you’re missing $500 in stimulus check money, you’d owe $500 instead of $1,000.)

Benefit 3: The chance to set up direct deposit with the IRS, or fix any errors. People with direct deposit accounts on file with the IRS have typically received their stimulus payments faster than those getting money in the mail. We suspect the same will be true with the third stimulus check of up to $1,400 per person (read about why the new check might be “targeted”).

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Stimulus check No. 3: What you need to know

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