The new COVID relief bill, which will bring $1,400 to individuals making less than $75,000 and $2,800 for couples making less than $150,000 will do something else significant for unemployed workers.
The bill offers a federal tax break for people who received unemployment benefits in 2020. If you already filed your taxes, there will be a process outlined by the IRS to claim it, but if you haven’t- it will be available to take advantage of before tax day rolls around.
Under the rule, the first $10,200 that the unemployed worker receives will not be taxable for households with income under $150,000.
“We are retroactively, in the middle of a filing season, passing a law that changes rules for 2020 that everyone’s been following for almost 2 1/2 months now… The IRS does not have this programmed, it’s not on the tax forms, it’s everybody’s worst nightmare from an administrative standpoint,” James P. Schnell, a CPA and Partner at Mengel Metzger Barr & Co. told News10NBC.
The solution will be filing an amendment. Beyond that, it’s unclear if New York State will follow on the measure.
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