Stimulus check US: do inmates qualify for government payment?
The Internal Revenue Service has been sending stimulus payments via direct deposit or through the mail to millions of Americans during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has already sent out 128.3 million stimulus checks worth a total of $218.4 billion to millions of Americans across the United States as the coronavirus pandemic continues. More than 30 million Americans have been left without a job because of the virus.
Since the IRS started sending payments in mid-April there have been reports of deceased people receiving payments and some have asked if inmates are also eligible for the CARES Act. According to the IRS a person who is in prison doesn’t qualify for a stimulus payment and if for any reason they receive a $1,200 check they are obliged to return it immediately.
The only exception that makes an inmate entitled to keep the stimulus payment is if it was made payable to joint filers and only one spouse is in prison. If that is the case then the person who is in prison needs to return the money, which would be for an amount of $1,200 unless the couple’s adjusted gross income exceeds $150,000.
List of people who don’t get a stimulus check for breaking the law
- Incarcerated in jail or a prison after being convicted of a crime.
- Held in a mental health facility following a verdict or finding of guilty but insane, not guilty by reason of insanity, or incompetent to stand trial
- Determined to be a sexually dangerous person or sexual predator and confined to a halfway house or other similar facility
- Fleeing to avoid prosecution or prison time for a felony
- In violation of probation or parole.
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