Questions answered about your stimulus payment

With recent federal government action under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) passed by Congress, millions of Americans have received or are expecting to receive a stimulus payment, most in the amount of $1,200. Parents of minor dependent children may receive an additional payment of $500.

The payment of these funds, as with other government programs, raises questions. Who is entitled to receive a stimulus payment, when will it be received, is it taxable, and does it count against you if you receive other government benefits are some of the questions asked. This column will attempt to answer some of these questions but recognizes there are more.

First, if you already receive payments directly from the government by automatic deposit to a bank account, the chances are good that you have already received payment into your account. Payments dependent on checks through the mail are likely taking longer.

QUESTION NO. 1 » If a check names a person who is deceased do I need to return it? The answer is “yes, “with one exception. The exception is that, while the entire payment must be returned where the payment was made to one person, if the payment was made to joint filers, eg. husband and wife, and one spouse died and the other survived, then only the portion of the payment made on account of the decedent needs to be returned.

This is how to return a payment to a deceased person according to IRS guidelines.

If the payment was a paper check and made payable to an individual deceased person: (1) Write “void” in the