ATLANTA — As stimulus payments rolled out yesterday, many found themselves in the frustrating position of neither getting the money nor being able to check their status on the IRS status tracker tool.
They saw only this message:
Payment Status Not Available
According to information that we have on file, we cannot determine your eligibility for a payment at this time.
RELATED: Getting 'Payment Status Not Available' from the new IRS stimulus check tracker? You're not alone
For some, the reasons are straightforward. Others continue to face a confusing, frustrating situation.
Here's what we know:
UPDATE: A Treasury spokeswoman said issues with people who filed using H&R Block or TurboTax and which prevented them from getting payments, first reported in The Washington Post, have now been fixed.
Original story continues below
A Treasury spokeswoman told 11Alive yesterday there shouldn't be any errors with people receiving that message. If the IRS is telling you it can't determine your eligibility, a couple things could be happening:
- You've filed for 2019, but it hasn't processed - this is the easiest explanation for some individuals, and you can attempt to see if it's been processed in a couple ways outlined here
- You're incorrectly inputting your information. The spokeswoman said it could potentially be an issue with your address.
As a number of Reddit users have reported, the address appears to be a potential sticking point.
Let's take the Georgia Capitol Building as an example:
Its address is 206 Washington St. SW. But for the IRS system, both the southwest "SW" marker and the street abbreviation "St." could be problematic. You can try simply putting 206 Washington Street, spelled in full, or even just 206 Washington if that doesn't work. If you live in an apartment, try it without the apartment number, too.
If you've entered in incorrect information too many times, you will see a message locking you out for 24 hours for security reasons.
The IRS has also posted this updated guidance on its website, though it does not address people facing the most frustrating situation - people who have filed for 2018, do not have a 2019 return processing, and who seem to be getting the message without explanation.
In certain cases, the Get My Payment app will be unable to tell you the status of your payment. You may receive this message for one of the following reasons:
- If you are not eligible for a payment (see IRS.gov on who is eligible and who is not eligible)
- If you are required to file a tax return and have not filed in tax year 2018 or 2019.
- If you recently filed your return or provided information through Non-Filers: Enter Your Payment Info on IRS.gov. Your payment status will be updated when processing is completed.
- If you are a SSA or RRB Form 1099 recipient, SSI or VA benefit recipient – the IRS is working with your agency to issue your payment; your information is not available in this app yet.
You can check the app again to see whether there has been an update to your information. Get My Payment data is updated once per day, so there’s no need to check back more frequently.
A number of people on sites like Twitter have reported, however, being in the trickiest situation to explain - people who filed in 2018, have not filed in 2019 (and so don't have the processing issue) and yet who still get the message.
11Alive has reached out to the Treasury Department to see if there is any specific guidance or clarification IRS can provide to people in this specific situation. We will update if and when we get a response.
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