Finance

The Federal Stimulus Payments, Your Child Support, and Tax Returns

2nd and 3rd Stimulus Payments (COVID Relief Bill)

Your 2nd stimulus payments (approved in January 2021) and 3rd stimulus update payments (approved by March 20, 2021) can’t be garnished in order in order to cover child care. According to the CARES Act, your 1st stimulus payment (approved on April 20, 2020) can be garnished, however, the law was amended for the 2nd and 3rd payments.

I HAVE NOT RECEIVED MY STIMULUS FUNDS VIA THE IRS AND I AM HOPING TO RECEIVE THEM ON MY TAX RETURN. CAN MY TAX RETURN AS WELL AS THE STIMULUS PAYMENTS BE KEPT BY THE IRS IN CASE OF UNPAID CHILD SUPPORT?

  • If you owe over $150 in a public assistance claim or over $500 in a private assistance case, federal law demands that the IRS keep a portion or the entire amount of the unpaid stimulus payments and tax return in the event that you file your taxes.


Can federal stimulus rebates be held by the IRS to pay child support obligations?

  • The 1st stimulus update installment (approved in April 2020) was subject to being withheld to pay child support debt. Second (approved Jan 2021) and 3rd (approved March 2021) stimulus update payments aren’t eligible to be withheld due to unpaid support for children.

If I owe child care can the tax refund I file be used for the arrears in child support?

  • Maybe. Laws and rules of the Federal government decide the time when federal funds are intercepted and used to pay child support arrears.
  • If TANF has been accessed for your child the total amount of past due payments for all your Child Support cases has to not exceed $150.
  • If TANF is not granted to your child The total amount of the past due support on all of your child’s case support must amount to a minimum of $500.

In the event that I am in arrears for child care Will I be informed of the fact that tax returns is likely be applied to the arrears in child support?

  • Yes. You received a notice at the time your application was requested to offset federal tax refunds. The federal government must issue an offset notice to you if your stimulus rebate has been redirected. The notice will inform the taxpayer that their tax refund was used to pay the debt of your child support and ask you to notify your local Child Support Division if you suspect that it was a mistake.

What happens if I’m with someone else who owes me child support Will my tax refund be applied to the arrears of child support they might have to pay?

  • Yes, unless qualified to be granted relief. If you don’t have child support obligations, but have a spouse who is liable for child support it is possible to make an Injured Spouse Claims and Allocation – Form 839
  • In some cases there are instances where the IRS will offset a portion of the amount paid to a spouse who has filed an injury claim, if it is offset by the spouse not injured’s due child support. The FAQ on the IRS stimulus update far .The IRS is aware that in some instances a portion of the payment sent to a spouse who filed an injured spouse claim with his or her 2019 tax return (or 2018 tax return if no 2019 tax return has been filed) has been offset by the non-injured spouse’s past-due child support. It is believed that the IRS has partnered with the Bureau of the Fiscal Service and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Child Support Enforcement, to address this problem as soon as it is feasible. If you filed an injury spouse claim on your tax return and you are affected due to this problem, you don’t have to take any action. The spouse who was injured is entitled to the remaining half of the entire payment once the issue is settled.

If I’m the parent with custody and currently or ever had the privilege of receiving TANF or Medicaid for my child, can I get any money through a tax form that has been intercepted by the Federal government and the noncustodial parent of my behalf?

  • Maybe. Federal law governs how the funds that are received by a state child support agency in the Federal Tax Refund Offset Program are disbursed. In Texas the taxes offsets from federal law are first applied to arrears that have been assigned or arrears owned from the government, before being applied to arrearages owed to a family. If you owe money towards the state as a result of your situation then the tax offset payments that exceed the amount due by the state are held from the government. The rest of the money will be given to you in the amount of arrears that are not assigned due to you by the noncustodial parent. The amount you can receive will be contingent on a variety of variables, including the amount of tax refund that was redirected as well as the amount due to you in the case as well as the number of child support cases where the parent who is not custodial owes the child support in arrears. You also need to be in a full-service case before Child Support Division Child Support Division to be eligible to receive any money from a tax return that has been intercepted.

If I’m the parent with custody, and I haven’t had access to TANF or Medicaid for my child, can I be able to receive any funds through a tax form that was intercepted by the Federal government and the noncustodial parent of my behalf?

  • Maybe. If the parent who is not custodial is in arrears with you for child support and the arrears total on the cases of the noncustodial parent meet the threshold amount specified in Question #2, you are eligible to receive the money that was intercepted from the parent who is not custodial on their tax return. The amount you receive will be contingent upon various aspects, such as the amount in the tax returns that is intercepted as well as the amount due to you in your particular case as well as the number of child support cases where the parent who is not custodial owes the child support in arrears. You also must be in a full-service case before Child Support Division Child Support Division to be qualified to receive any funds from an IRS tax return.

What is the time frame to get the payment?

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