Advance Payment Checks Begin This Summer

HARTFORD — The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department will begin sending out advance payments later this summer under a new tax law passed by Congress and signed by President Bush. An estimated 1.27 million checks will be sent to Connecticut residents. The total of the payments scheduled to arrive in Connecticut mailboxes amounts to an estimated $552 million.

The first checks will go out the week of July 23, and most of the mailings will be completed by the end of September.

Single taxpayers who paid federal income taxes for 2000 could receive up to $300. Heads of households could get up to $500, and married couples could receive up to $600. Anyone who could have been claimed as a dependent on another person’s 2000 tax return is not eligible for a check.

Taxpayers will learn by mid-July how much they will receive. The IRS will send taxpayers a letter describing the check amount and the week it will be sent. The agency will also send a letter of explanation for taxpayers not eligible for the advance payment.

“We want to make this process as simple as possible for taxpayers,” said IRS Commissioner Charles O. Rossotti. “These letters should give people all the important details they need.”

“Eligible taxpayers don’t have to do anything special to get the credit,” said Dianne Besunder, IRS spokesperson for Connecticut. “You don’t need to call or fill out a form. All you need to do is open your mailbox. We’ll take care of everything else,” she said.

Generally, the last two digits of the taxpayer’s social security number will determine when the checks are mailed, so people may get a check at a different time than neighbors or even other family members.

The IRS reminds taxpayers of several key points on the payments:

Taxpayers don’t need to do anything to receive the checks.

Taxpayers should keep a copy of the letter sent in advance of the check for their records.

Individuals who have not yet filed a tax return for 2000 will not get any advance payment check until the IRS processes that return.

Taxpayers who have moved should file a change of address form with the US Postal Service to ensure the checks go to the correct address.