IMPORTANT Announcement for Social Security Beneficiaries With Dependent Children

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The federal government is working overtime to ensure all eligible Americans receive the COVID-19 relief payments that were included in the CARES Act.

SSA, RRB recipients with eligible children need to act by Wednesday to quickly add money to their automatic Economic Impact Payment. While most Social Security beneficiaries won’t need to do any additional paperwork to receive these payments, those with dependent children under age 17 who did not file a tax return in 2018 or 2019 need to go the IRS Non-filer tool by Wednesday so they can receive the $500 payment for each child.

Veterans benefit recipients who did not file a tax return in 2018 or 2019 should also use the online tool to claim any dependent children.

Supplemental Security Income recipients with dependent children also need to file the online form, but a deadline hasn’t been announced yet.

The details:

The Administration took swift action to ensure that seniors and other Americans who are on Social Security would receive automatic coronavirus relief payments. The Treasury Department announced that for Social Security beneficiaries with dependents who did not file taxes in 2018 or 2019, they will need to fill out a quick online tool by Wednesday, April 22nd, in order to receive the $500 payments for their dependent children.

“If the IRS does not receive this essential information by Wednesday, their payment will be $1,200 and the $500 per child will be paid to them with a return filing for tax year 2020,” Secretary Mnuchin said. You can find the online tool here. By entering some basic information, these individuals can receive the full amount owed to them as part of the CARES Act.

Want to read more on the fight against Coronavirus? Read our Coronavirus Bulletin here which contains our extensive FAQ about recent federal actions.