Tax Rebates Under the Stimulus Package?

Brian Serene · 01-26-2008, 09:43 AM

Does anyone know whether a person would have to have worked during 2007 to get the proposed tax rebate that is under consideration.

If the only sources of income are from retirement funds that have Federal income tax taken out of them, and interest income which is also subject to Federal Income taxes, would that person be eligible for the Tax Rebate.

Thanks In Advance

Joseph DeMartino · 01-26-2008, 10:08 AM

No one knows because no stimulus package has been passed. Senators on both sides of the aisle have expressed displeasure with the version hammered out by the House and the White House, and they will be debating changes next week. Assuming they pass a different version it will have to go to a conference committee and then the resulting final bill will have be be acceptable to the president.

So we're a heck of a long way from knowing what the final package is going to look like.

Regards,

Joe

Jay Taylor · 01-26-2008, 10:14 AM

Like Joe said, it's not approved yet and may change. However you will qualify with the current proposal. Here's an excerpt:

Leaders agreed only on the basics of the plan Thursday. Many details need to be worked out. Here's what it means to you:
Q: How much will people get?
A: Most individuals will get up to $600; couples will get up to $1,200. People will get an additional $300 for each dependent child.
Q: You said most. Who is eligible?
A: To get the maximum $600 or $1,200 payment, people must have paid federal income taxes in 2007 and had earned income of at least $3,000.
Those who made at least $3,000 but didn't pay any federal income tax would get $300 per individual or $600 per couple.
Q: Are there income limits?
A: Yes. The payments would start phasing out for individuals with adjusted gross incomes of more than $75,000 and couples with incomes of more than $150,000.
Individuals with incomes higher than $87,000 and couples with incomes higher than $174,000 would not be eligible, unless they had children. The caps would be slightly higher for people with children, but those figures weren't available Thursday.

From here:
How would you spend the tax rebate? - Michigan News, Updates, Photos & Video | Detroit, Lansing - MLive.com

Chris_Morris · 01-26-2008, 10:15 AM

The House version would apply to your 2007 return, and the check would not be issued until after your return was processed.

Brian Serene · 01-26-2008, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jay Taylor

Like Joe said, it's not approved yet and may change. However you will qualify with the current proposal. Here's an excerpt:

Leaders agreed only on the basics of the plan Thursday. Many details need to be worked out. Here's what it means to you:
Q: How much will people get?
A: Most individuals will get up to $600; couples will get up to $1,200. People will get an additional $300 for each dependent child.
Q: You said most. Who is eligible?
A: To get the maximum $600 or $1,200 payment, people must have paid federal income taxes in 2007 and had earned income of at least $3,000.
Those who made at least $3,000 but didn't pay any federal income tax would get $300 per individual or $600 per couple.
Q: Are there income limits?
A: Yes. The payments would start phasing out for individuals with adjusted gross incomes of more than $75,000 and couples with incomes of more than $150,000.
Individuals with incomes higher than $87,000 and couples with incomes higher than $174,000 would not be eligible, unless they had children. The caps would be slightly higher for people with children, but those figures weren't available Thursday.

From here:
How would you spend the tax rebate? - Michigan News, Updates, Photos & Video | Detroit, Lansing - MLive.com

I don't understand why you said that I will qualify. Is Retirement Income considered earned income? I did not work during 2007.

Do you think that I would still qualify? I know that these are only proposals.

Thanks again.

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Glenn Overholt · 01-26-2008, 10:40 AM

Ditto to what Brian said. It also sounds like they could hand out checks to homeless people. Hey, they need the money too, right?

Glenn

Joseph DeMartino · 01-26-2008, 08:01 PM

Neither pension payments nor investment income is considered "earned income" according to the IRS's definition. So I'm afraid Brian is out of luck, at least if the current version of the bill becomes law.

Regards,

Joe

SethH · 01-27-2008, 06:44 AM

So does the proposed version of this rebate work just like the rebate back in '01 or '02 (or whenever that was)? That one was an advance rather than a rebate, meaning you had to subtract that amount from your refund the next year.

Eric_L · 01-28-2008, 06:50 AM

plenty of people without taxable earnings get 'rebates' - this one will be no different. Plenty of people WITH taxable earnings don't get 'rebates'. It is not really a rebate as much as it is a redistribution.

Jay Taylor · 01-28-2008, 05:18 PM

Brian I still think that you will get the rebate under the current proposal even though your retirement and interest income is not considered earned income.

This info:

What If I'm a Retiree on Social Security?

Question: "Will tax rebates be given to retirees on Social Security who are not working? Will there be income parameters? Thank you." Carrie from Bradenton, Fla.

McPherson: Carrie, retirees will be eligible to the extent they owe federal income taxes