Will You Be Getting Your $1,400?

Help is on the way! 😃💵

Like many Americanos, a lot of us have been out of work consistently since this pandemia began. While staying at home has been necessary, it has become less of an espectaculo with our favorite television shows being delayed or even cancelled, and so many awards shows turning in a fancy zoom party that just doesn’t bedazzle. 🥱 But now there’s some good news and some dinerito is coming our way, which can help us climb out of this financial mess while also distracting us until the world gets back to normal. 🥳 Porque we know you miss your abuelita and all your familia 😩❤️

The House and Senate approved the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and the president has now signed the bill into law. 💰 What does this mean for you? As soon as March 14th, this third relief package could be making its way to your billetera to give you a financial boost. So here’s what’s included and more importantly, how will you spend it? Or better yet, should you invest it? 🤑

$1400 Stimulus Checks 💸

If you have an adjusted gross income of up to $75,000 as an individual or $150,000 as a couple, you will receive direct payments of $1,400 per person. You will also qualify for $1400 for each of your dependent children. 

Para todos aquellos who earned an adjusted gross income of $80,000 or more, and for couples who earned $150,000 or more, these checks will gradually phase out and disappear. This could be un golpe al corazon to those of us who make slightly more but we do have some favorable news for some of our gente. While the bill passed will be distributed only to those who have a social security number, unlike the previous stimulus, people who are married to an undocumented immigrant, will be able to get the stimulus this time around. 

We understand a lot of people are upset about these news given that 9.3 million immigrants still pay taxes with their ITN numbers and on top of that, are the majority of our essential workers who have been heavily impacted by the pandemic.Pero a few states like California have implemented financial help programs for undocumented people. After all, they keep our country running, qué no?!

Lastly, it’s worth noting that Biden’s initial proposal had these caps at $100,000 for individuals, $150,000 for single parents and $200,000 for couples. Because, pues, inflation! Also, keep in mind that the IRS is basing these figures off of your most recently filed tax return. So for this stimulus payment, they will figure your stimulus based on your 2019 or 2020 return, whichever is available. Ojo 👀

Unemployment Benefits 😊

The $300 benefit payment per week will now continue through September, 2021. Biden’s original plan also proposed increasing this to $400 per week. Mixed earners, or those who have both regular and self employment (W2 and 1099) income in the year prior to their UI application can still qualify for an additional $100 per week in supplemental UI if those 1099 earnings were at least $5,000. Another change is that now federal income tax on unemployment benefits received in 2020 will be waived for up to $10,200 for anyone who earned under $150,000. Si, we know that’s a lot of numeros, but basically…. If you’ve been getting unemployment, just know that it’s going to continue through September. If you’ve only been getting $300 every week, but you have $5,000 in self employment earnings in your base period, you can qualify for an additional $100 each week. Woohoo!

Child Tax Credit 👶

Esto es para todos los chamacos and our growing familias! This credit will increase from $2000 to $3,600 for children up to age 5, and $3,000 for children aged 6 to 17 for 2021. This tax credit also now covers lower-income earners who previously did not qualify. Que bien! So if you earned $75,000 as an individual or $150,000 as a couple, you qualify. From there, the credit will be reduced by $50 for every additional $1000 of adjusted gross income earned and eventually phased out. For those ineligible who make more than $75,000 or $150,000 filing jointly, they can still claim $2,000 per child if they earned up to $200,000 and $400,000 filing jointly. And the credit will now be delivered as a monthly payment from the Department of Treasury. 

Child and Dependent Care Credit

This credit has been substantially increased to $4,000 max for 1 dependent ($8,000 for two or more). This covers 50% of eligible care expenses for children or other dependents, and is available to households making up to $125,000. This change is only for the 2021 tax year.

Local Governments and Businesses 🏛️

$350 billion has been allotted for cities, states, territories and tribal governments. This will help colleges and universities, transit agencies, child care providers and food assistance organizations. It will also go to live venues, restaurants, and small businesses. You know like that mom and pop shop where you get your pan dulce?  $28.6 billion is going towards a restaurant revitalization fund and are providing grants up to $5 million each. And for those of you who’ve been itching to visit tu Abue and are wondering how the airlines are doing, approximately $14 billion of these funds will help U.S. airlines that don’t furlough workers. ¡ahí voy, abue! ✈️ 

Health care ⚕️

Subsidies for Affordable Care Act health care plans will increase temporarily, and subsidies will provide for COBRA continuation of coverage through 2021, for those laid off or furloughed.

Another $15 billion is allocated for Covid-19 vaccination distribution, hiring health care workers to disseminate it, and $46 billion for more Covid-19 testing, tracing, and monitoring. Sounds like soon enough we will be able to catch up on all those abrazos from our familia!

Managing your money 🧐

So now that you know you’re getting what feels like free money, please por el amor de Dios, think before you splurge on a PS5 and consider putting that money into your savings or better yet, investing it! 

As we’ve all seen, emergencies can blindside us and getting everything back to normal is still going to take some time. Even for those of us who currently have jobs, layoffs are always a possibility as companies grow and change. So maximize your savings and contribute the stimulus to your retirement fund, or pay off debt, especially if it’s charging you a high interest rate. 

If you’re wondering where you payment is or have yet to receive your last stimulus check, the U.S. Treasury regularly updates information posted to its online portal. For all things stimulus check direct from its source, visit the Internal Revenue Service information page here. 🕵🏽‍♂️

And to get better with managing your financial life, join us at SUMA and we’ll get you on track and in shape to live a wealthier lifestyle! 😎