Your taxes could do double duty this year, so it’s a good thing, perhaps, that the IRS has nudged back the start date for tax-filing season to Feb. 12, giving tax payers and nonfilers a few more days to gather their paperwork to both file their taxes and claim any stimulus money still due. As with any year, if you get everything to the IRS early, you’ll get your federal tax refund sooner. But this year, filing promptly has two more advantages for many people, and both have to do withstimulus checks.

The benefits of filing early apply to a number of groups of people who didn’t get all the money they were entitled to as part of the first or second stimulus payment. Maybe the check didn’t arrive because of a clerical error or some other issue. Some folks had problems with custody and child support, missing money for child dependents in general or accidental garnishment.

Our advice also applies to 8 million or more nonfilers, who will have to file a tax return this year to get their stimulus payment. And submitting taxes as soon as possible may also have an impact for tens of millions of people who’ll be eligible for a third stimulus payment of up to $1,400 per person — that stimulus check may arrive sooner than you think. We’ll explain what you need to know. In addition, 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. This story was recently updated.

Biggest benefits of filing taxes early, other than your tax refund

The earlier you file your taxes, the sooner you’ll get your tax refund (you can estimate the total here). But since missing stimulus check money is also tied to your tax return this time around, filing early will mean you could get a larger overall bundle — that is, 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.)

The second major benefit to filing early is 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.”)

If you already have direct deposit set up, this is your opportunity to correct any errors or switch or add accounts — you can have up to three — before the next payment goes out. The stimulus check timeline has been accelerated, which means the new stimulus payment could arrive in the middle of tax season. It isn’t clear what effect that may have, if any, but we’d encourage you to make sure direct deposit is available to you, if you want to get your check faster.

Key dates to know: When you could get the missing stimulus money and your tax refund

Though you can still technically file your taxes by mail and request a paper check, the fastest way to get the money you’re owed is to file electronically and have funds deposited directly into your bank account. This year, the IRS won’t begin accepting tax returns until Feb. 12, making that the soonest you can submit your own (April 15 is the last day to file). The IRS says 90% of filers will receive their refunds in 21 days or sooner, but it could also take even less time than that.

The IRS says its Where’s My Refund tool will reflect the status of your refund within 24 hours of filing, which could include a confirmation that your refund has been issued. From there, it could take anywhere from one to three days for the money to appear in your bank account.

When to expect your tax refund

If you file on this date	This is the soonest	This is the latest
Feb 12	Feb 19	Mar 5
Mar 1	Mar 8	Mar 22
Apr 1	Apr8	Apr 22
Apr 15 (last day to file)	Apr 22	May 6
Oct 15 (last day with extension)	Oct 22	Nov 5

Assuming seven days is the soonest you’d get your combined tax/stimulus refund and 21 days is the longest, we’ve sketched out what a difference filing sooner, rather than later, could make. (There’s more below on how to calculate how much money you might get in addition to your tax refund.)

How can you discover if the IRS owes you a stimulus payment?

To figure out whether and how much money you’re owed from a previous round of stimulus checks, if any, first you have to determine how much you were owed for each previous payment, then subtract from that any amount you already received.

Here’s how to calculate the payments you were owed:

• For the first check, use this $1,200 stimulus calculator to estimate your total.
• For the second check, use this $600 stimulus calculator for an estimate.
• To predict a possible third check, use this $1,400 calculator.

Next, you’ll want to check your bank account where your payments were deposited to determine the amount you received. (If you received an EIP card, you can check the balance and transaction history here.) The IRS should’ve sent you a letter within 15 days of issuing your stimulus check, however it was issued, and that letter should indicate how much money you received. (Here’s what to do if you didn’t get the IRS’ notice.)

If you no longer have that letter, you can use the IRS’s Get My Payment tool to help you figure out when you received the payment. It’ll also show you the last four digits of the bank account it was deposited into if it was deposited directly.

There’s also a form to help you figure out the amount you’re owed on page 59 of this PDF detailing instructions for 1040 and 1040-SR tax forms, but it’s a doozy to follow.

Why the IRS could owe you money from one or both stimulus payments

There are all kinds of reasons why the IRS might still owe you stimulus check money, including:

• You missed the deadline to request a payment.
• Money was mistakenly garnished from a previous stimulus check.
• There was an error with your direct deposit.
• You claim a child as a dependent for whom you didn’t get paid.
• The IRS made a mistake
  calculating a previous check.

How to claim your missing stimulus money on your taxes

The IRS requires you to fill out either form 1040 or 1040-SR if you’re going to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2020 taxes. Once you have the amount you’re owed worked out, you’ll enter it on line 30 of either of those forms (see screenshot). Yes, it’s that simple.

How you’ll get your missing stimulus money

If you’re due a refund from the IRS, it’ll include both your full refund amount and whatever you’re owed from the Recovery Rebate Credit. In other words, it’ll be bigger. If, however, you owe the IRS money, your Recovery Rebate Credit will be applied to the debt. If the tax credit is more than you owe, you’ll receive the difference as a refund.

Here’s what to do if you’re a nonfiler, i.e. you won’t be filing taxes for 2020, and you’re still owed a stimulus check. If you have child dependents, this information about the child tax credit could help put more money in your pocket. And here’s how to calculate your Adjusted Gross Income, aka AGI.