• The IRS is sending out stimulus checks to taxpayers who did not claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax return.
• The deadline to file your 2021 taxes to be eligible for the stimulus check is April 15, 2025.
• The IRS estimated that 1.1 million Americans were missing out on their 2021 income tax refunds because they hadn’t filed their taxes.
• Checks, up to $1,400, will be mailed via paper check or direct deposited into the bank account provided with a 2023 return.

Are you missing out on free money? You might be owed a $1,400 stimulus check from the federal government. If you haven’t already received one, it’s not too late for eligible people to meet the deadline.

Many taxpayers are also missing out on income tax returns, including from previous years, because they haven’t filed.

The Internal Revenue Service started sending out approximately $2.4 billion to 1 million taxpayers for Recovery Rebate Credit checks that had not been claimed back in December.

But the final deadline to be eligible is just days away in April.

Separately, the IRS estimates that 1.1 million Americans are missing out on their 2021 income tax refunds because they haven’t filed their taxes. That totals about $1 billion in unclaimed money.

That deadline is also looming, and if people miss it, the funds become property of the U.S. Treasury.

According to the IRS, Mississippi taxpayers are owed about $8,283,600. Approximately 9,600 people who haven’t filed their 2021 taxes could get back $701 on average.

Here’s what you need to know about if you’re eligible for a stimulus check in Mississippi and when the deadline to file is.

Who can get the stimulus check?

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), more than a million taxpayers in the U.S. didn’t claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax return.

The refundable credit was for people who didn’t get one or more Economic Impact Payments (or stimulus checks) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

How do I get the check? How much is it?

You don’t have to do anything to claim it. They’ll be sent automatically.

The IRS said checks, up to a maximum of $1,400, will be mailed via paper check or direct deposited into the bank account provided with a 2023 return. A separate letter will come with notification of the payment.

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What if I didn’t file my 2021 taxes? When is the deadline?

You have until April 15, 2025, to file back-year returns.

The IRS said you might still be eligible for the check, but only people who have filed their taxes will get one.

People also have to file their 2021 taxes to get any refunds that might be owed.

Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with Gannett/USA Today. Email her at [email protected].