Your third stimulus check — for up to $1,400 — is headed for a big vote in the U.S. House this week, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the other Democrats who control Congress hurry to meet a deadline for President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion relief bill.
If things go as planned, you could have more money to pay down debt, take care of bills, build up your emergency savings, invest or just splurge within weeks.
But potential roadblocks remain. Here’s an update, including the latest estimate on how soon you’ll get your next stimulus check — barring any holdups.
The new stimulus checks face a major test
The COVID rescue bill — which includes not only the stimulus checks but also more funding for vaccines, $400 a week in extra benefits for unemployed Americans, and an increase in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour — is on its way to a vote in the full House.
That’s planned for Friday, says Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democrat after Pelosi. “The American people strongly support this bill, and we are moving swiftly to see it enacted into law,” Hoyer tweeted Tuesday night.
Much like the two earlier rounds of stimulus checks, the funds this time are expected to help cover essential needs for many people struggling through the pandemic. The first $1,200 payments distributed last spring were mostly spent on household expenses like groceries and rent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said.
With those needs met, others used some of the cash for saving and investing, a bureau survey found, or for other expenses that may have included buying affordable life insurance — demand for those policies has seen a surge amid COVID.
Democrats are trying to complete a bill for Biden to sign before the current federal jobless benefits, for $300 a week, run out in mid-March.
How soon will you get your money?
After the aid package clears the House, it goes to the Senate. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a Senate floor speech this week that the bill is “on track to go to the president’s desk before the March 14th expiration of unemployment insurance benefits.”
Democratic leaders will try save time by not putting the bill before various Senate committees, and sending it directly to a vote. But there’s a risk some portions of the legislation may still bog things down.
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and fellow Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin are against raising the minimum wage to $15. Manchin, who’s from West Virginia, also has questioned the income limits for the stimulus checks.
The amounts of the previous two checks phased out for individuals earning more than $75,000 a year, and the current plan is to keep Round 3 the same. But Manchin has supported lowering the threshold and cutting off payments entirely for Americans making over $75,000.
Because Democrats hold the thinnest of majorities in the Senate, they may need to drop the minimum wage provision or make other changes to keep all of their troops in line, so Congress can make its pre-March 14 deadline.
If that happens and Biden signs the bill immediately, the IRS could start distributing checks within a few days. Which means you could receive your money as soon as the second half of March.
What if you need money right away?
With the new relief still several weeks away, if you can’t wait and need more money right now, here are a few ways you might find a little extra cash:
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Cut the cost of your debt. If your plastic has been carrying you through the pandemic, you’re probably piling up costly interest. Make your debt more manageable — and shake it off more quickly — by folding your balances into a single debt consolidation loan at lower interest.
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Shrink your insurance bills. Car insurance companies have been offering customers discounts as everyone has been driving way less because of COVID. If yours isn’t willing to negotiate, why not shop around for a better deal? And while you’re at it, you could save hundreds by comparing rates to find a lower price on homeowners insurance.
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Refinance your mortgage (if you’ve got one) and slash your payments. If you haven’t looked around for a lower rate on your home loan in the last year, there’s no better time than now. Refinancing your existing mortgage could reap big savings. An estimated 16.7 million U.S. homeowners could reduce their monthly house payments by an average $303 through a refi, according to mortgage tech and data provider Black Knight.
What if you won’t get a stimulus check this time?
Again, Congress is moving ahead with the same income limits on stimulus checks as before — meaning if you got a full payment last time, you’ll get one again.
But if it looks like you aren’t going to receive the full $1,400 check — or get any payment at all — there are a couple of things you can do:
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File your 2020 taxes ASAP. You could still qualify for a stimulus check if your income dropped in 2020 because of the pandemic. You’ll want to get that information in front of the tax agency ASAP, because it will base your eligibility on your most recent tax return. Log into a good tax software product and submit your 2020 return immediately.
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Trim your budget and “make your own” stimulus check. By finding a few creative ways to cut back, you might squeeze $1,400 out of your current budget. Call up your cellphone provider and switch to a more budget-friendly package. Turn your hobby or special talent into a side hustle to bring in extra income. And, download a free browser extension that will automatically scour for better prices and coupons whenever you shop online.
