• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
Financestimulus

Everything to know about $1,400 stimulus checks

By
Anne Sraders
Anne Sraders
and
Lance Lambert
Lance Lambert
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Anne Sraders
Anne Sraders
and
Lance Lambert
Lance Lambert
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 10, 2021, 2:12 PM ET
Updated March 12, 2021, 1:38 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Update: This article has been updated to reflect President Biden signing the bill.

The third round of stimulus checks will soon be on its way.

On Wednesday, the House passed the $1.9 trillion relief package that includes a $1,400 check for the majority of U.S. taxpayers. President Joe Biden signed the bill on Thursday afternoon, paving the way for checks to start going out as soon as this weekend.

But this round of stimulus checks is a bit different than the two rounds sent out in 2020. To help Americans better understand what the checks will look like, Fortune created a guide for everything you need to know about this third round of direct payments.

Who qualifies for stimulus checks? How much will the stimulus checks be worth?

This third stimulus payment will go out to fewer households than the two rounds sent in 2020.

Single filers earning up to $75,000 will get a full $1,400 stimulus check, and couples filing jointly with income of up to $150,000 will get a $2,800 stimulus check in the new round. The payments are based on adjusted gross income, which is in your federal tax filing. Additionally, those who qualify would get an extra $1,400 per dependent—which includes not only children, but for the first time, adult dependents as well.

A family of four making $150,000 or less would qualify for $5,600 in stimulus money.

In the new package, however, checks would begin to phase out faster than those in previous rounds. Single filers making over $80,000 per year and joint filers making more than $160,000 wouldn’t receive a check at all. By some estimates, that could leave out roughly 12 million adults and roughly 5 million children from getting a check this time around.

When will the stimulus checks be sent out?

The Biden administration plans to send out checks as soon as this weekend.

After the signing of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act in March 2020, it took two weeks for the first of $1,200 checks to go out. But after the passage of the $600 checks in December, it took direct deposits only four days to start. The Treasury Department should be able to stick to that four-day turnaround, or possibly even faster.

Simply put, all signs point to the Treasury Department getting checks out this month.

How will my check be delivered?

Taxpayers who are eligible and previously provided their direct deposit information to the IRS will not be required to do anything. Their check will automatically deposit in their bank account.

Taxpayers who don’t have direct deposit set up will instead receive a paper check in the mail. In 2020, stimulus checks delivered via mail were sent out a few days after direct deposits started. It’s reasonable to expect the same delay this go-round.

Will my stimulus check be based on my 2019 or 2020 income?

For this third stimulus check, eligibility will be based on taxpayers’ most recent return: either 2019 or 2020.

That means Americans who saw income declines in 2020 could potentially benefit if they had already filed. That’s what Sen. Ron Wyden suggested last month when he tweeted: “Tax filing season starts February 12. By filing your taxes early, you’ll ensure your next relief payment will be based off of your most recent income. If you lost wages in 2020 as a result of this pandemic, file your taxes ASAP to ensure you get the help you need.”

However, if you believe you received a smaller amount of stimulus money in 2020 than you qualified for because you had changes to your income or life (such as losing a job or having a child last year) that wouldn’t be reflected in your 2019 return, you might be eligible to get those funds through the Recovery Rebate Credit, in addition to the new $1,400 payment. In that case, you can fill out the Recovery Rebate Credit Worksheet in the Form 1040 instructions.

About the Authors
Anne Sraders
By Anne Sraders
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Lance LambertFormer Real Estate Editor
Twitter icon

Lance Lambert is a former Fortune editor who contributes to the Fortune Analytics newsletter.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Finance

Larry Page and Sergey Brin
SuccessBillionaires
Google’s founders are snapping up Miami mansions, as billionaires flee California’s proposed tax—and the company is buying office space to accommodate
By Emma BurleighJuly 22, 2026
2 hours ago
t
Personal FinanceWhite House
Trump said Australia’s system ‘worked out very well’ with $200,000 saved by 67 — so why didn’t he apply that model to Trump Accounts?
By Kris Iyer and The ConversationJuly 22, 2026
2 hours ago
Current price of gold as of July 22, 2026
Personal Financegold prices
Current price of gold as of July 22, 2026
By Danny BakstJuly 22, 2026
4 hours ago
t
CommentaryTariffs
Trump’s third tariff tantrum piles more dizzying distractions on top of ever-spiraling failures
By Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Steven TianJuly 22, 2026
4 hours ago
orson
CommentaryOpenAI
We got California to intervene about OpenAI’s corporate switch from nonprofit status. It’s time for the SEC to come to the table
By Orson Aguilar and Catherine BracyJuly 22, 2026
4 hours ago
A woman observes stock trends on her smartphone while a computer screen displays financial graphs.
NewslettersCFO Daily
Beyond SpaceX: Why great IPOs depend on more than first-day demand
By Sheryl EstradaJuly 22, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
Cybersecurity
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 21, 2026
21 hours ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
AI
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
By Jason MaJuly 18, 2026
4 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.