Stimulus checks are not taxable, but unemployment benefits are | The State
You may owe money from unemployment benefits when filing your 2020 taxes.
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RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP / Getty Images
Last year, more than 160 million people received a first stimulus check of up to $ 1,200, or even double for couples. A second stimulus check began to be distributed in January, this time worth up to $ 600 per person, including children under 17.
You should know that you do not have to pay taxes on this money, because the payments were technically an advance on a 2020 tax credit.
Another support that was given to people during this crisis was unemployment benefits. Nevertheless, unlike stimulus checks, you will have to pay taxes on this unemployment money.
Congress has increased weekly extra payments of $ 300 until mid-March, in addition to the unemployment benefits that each state already provides, according to CNN.
This This is less than what the unemployed received last year when they were paid $ 600 per week for four months.
However, this time around, lawmakers expanded unemployment benefits to give money to more people, now including the self-employed, independent contractors and gig workers.
Like state unemployment benefits, federal payments are subject to income tax. Some people may have chosen to withhold tax from the benefit when they registered for unemployment with their state agency, but others may owe the full amount of tax when they file their 2020 return.
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