No simple tax return needed for Social Security beneficiaries who don't file tax return

The Treasury announced late Wednesday that Social Security beneficiaries who typically do not file a tax return will automatically get the $1,200 payment from the stimulus plan passed last week.

The announcement is a reversal from earlier in the week when the Internal Revenue Service said everyone would need to file some sort of tax return in order to qualify for the payments.

The $2.2 trillion aid legislation, passed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, directed the Treasury to look at Americans’ 2019 or 2018 tax returns to determine if they are eligible for a payment. But the law also said Treasury should look at Social Security data for seniors and the disabled.

Criticism poured in after the IRS posted a notice on its website on Monday instructing Social Security recipients who do not normally send in a return to file a “simple” tax return, which would be available soon.

More than 15 million Americans on Social Security do not file an annual tax return because their income is so low, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.