IRS: Last Chance for Direct Deposit Stimulus Payments Is May 13

Eligible Americans who miss deadline must wait for paper check in the mail

The IRS website economic impact payments page is displayed on a computer screen

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Published May 08, 2020

If you want to get your stimulus check deposited directly to your bank account, you have until noon Eastern time on Wednesday to give the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) your direct deposit information.

The IRS says it has already sent stimulus payments to 130 million people since mid-April. The relief payments, primarily made by direct deposit, total more than $200 billion. The agency says it will sharply increase the number of paper checks it sends out this month and into June.

Want your money faster?

Eligible stimulus recipients have until the noon deadline May 13 to enter their banking information online through the IRS Get My Payment tool to receive their payments via direct deposit — a speedier option than mail delivery. The tool will also provide a projected date for when the payment will land in the bank account.

"We're working hard to get more payments quickly to taxpayers,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in a statement. “We want people to visit Get My Payment before the noon Wednesday deadline so they can provide their direct deposit information. Time is running out for a chance to get these payments several weeks earlier through direct deposit."

Who's still waiting for a stimulus check?

The IRS says it expects to send out a total of more than 150 million payments to individuals, meaning 20 million-plus Americans have yet to receive their relief money. Among those are people such as low-income workers who weren't required to file tax returns in 2018 or 2019, the tax years the IRS used to determine eligibility for stimulus payments.

The IRS has another tool on IRS.gov, Non-Filers: Enter Payment Info Here, where low-income workers and some others who weren't required to file tax returns can register for a stimulus payment and enter bank account information. Keep in mind that the following groups who typically aren't required to file tax returns will receive or already have received $1,200 stimulus payments automatically without the need to register: those who receive Social Security retirement, disability (SSDI) and survivor benefits; Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries; railroad retirees; and Veterans Affairs (VA) beneficiaries.

Paper checks will take longer to arrive

After noon Wednesday, the IRS will begin preparing millions of files to send to the Bureau of Financial Services for paper checks that will begin arriving through late May and into June. Taxpayers who use the tools on IRS.gov before that cutoff can still take advantage of entering direct deposit information.

If you don't have a bank account, consider opening a low-cost online checking account for direct deposit. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has a handy tool for finding banks that will let you open an account online so you can get your stimulus check faster.

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