Didn’t Qualify for a Stimulus Check? A Few People Get Another Shot……

For some people, their 2019 or 2020 Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) was too high to receive the stimulus.

If you filed your 2020 tax return before the stimulus checks went out in March, your 2020 AGI was used to qualify you for a stimulus payment, otherwise, your 2019 AGI was used to qualify you. If you didn’t qualify, you get “another bite at the apple” with your 2021 AGI. If your 2021 AGI is below the $150k threshold (married filing jointly or $75,000 for individuals) you should get credit for the stimulus with your 2021 tax return which you file next year.

How do you manage your AGI? There are a few things you may be able to do:

-contribute to a qualified retirement plan

-if you’re self-employed, have enough 2021 business expenses to reduce you 2021 business income

-health savings account deductions

-some college tuition, fees, and student loan interest

-plus a few others.

Note that itemized deductions FROM AGI don’t help. That is, things such as mortgage interest and state and local tax deductions.

You’ll likely need to talk with your financial or tax advisor about the details, but if you’re close to the AGI threshold, you may be able to make it work.

You can read about how this works in gory detail at this link.

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