Back in April, the IRS released information on Plus Up Payments and Recovery Rebate Credits, two ways to get additional funding from the three stimulus packages that have passed since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Both the Plus-Up Payment and the Recovery Rebate Credit may allow you to receive more stimulus money, depending on your 2020 tax return. However, there are important differences between the two, including how much they will receive and how to apply for them.

The Plus-Up Payment, detailed in an April 1 IRS news release, supplements the third stimulus check. This is the $1,400 payment made possible by the American Bailout Plan Act of 2021, aka the Biden stimulus bill.

If you qualify for the Plus-Up Payment, you will receive an additional check as part of the IRS's weekly stimulus payment every Wednesday.

As explained in an IRS news release April 5, the Recovery Rebate Credit is a tax credit associated with the first ($1,200) and second ($600) stimulus checks created by the CARES Act of 2020 and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020. If you qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit, your 2020 taxes will be reduced and you will receive the credit as part of your tax refund.

Both the Plus-Up Payment and the Rebate Credit are determined by the 2020 tax return. However, the Plus-Up Payment is paid automatically once your return is processed by the IRS, whereas the rebate credit is something you must claim on your 2020 return. Otherwise, you will not get it.

In either case, eligibility for the payment depends on how much you received from any of the three stimulus packages and whether your tax situation changed between 2019 (or 2018) and 2020.

To qualify for either the Plus Up Payment or the Recovery Rebate Credit, you must:

The change in tax status may be caused by several factors, including:

Dependent Those who received the full amount of the three stimulus packages, including payments, will not qualify for either the Plus Up Payment or the Recovery Rebate Credit.

The first stimulus package provided $1,200 to all eligible individuals plus $500 per dependent under age 17; the second provided $600 to eligible individuals plus $600 per dependent under age 17; the third check was even more generous, All eligible individuals received $1,400, and $1,400 for each dependent, regardless of age.

In other words, a couple with three children under age 17 would have received up to $3,700 on the first check, $3,000 on the second, and $7,000 on the third. Under these circumstances, they would no longer receive the stimulus package.

However, if any of these three payments are less than the full amount and the tax status changes in 2020, the recipient may be eligible for additional payments. Changes in tax status include a decrease in income from 2019 to 2020, the addition of children or dependents, or a change in marital status.

For example, an individual with 2019 income of more than $99,000 and 2020 income of less than $75,000 might suddenly find himself or herself eligible to receive the full amount of three stimulus checks, totaling $3,200, plus amounts that would have been paid to dependents.

That is because their 2019 (or 2018) tax return will make them ineligible for stimulus checks under the first two stimulus bills. If the IRS had also used your 2019 return to calculate the amount you would have received under the third stimulus bill, you would have received nothing from that bill either.

To get either the Plus-Up Payment or the Recovery Rebate Credit, you must file your 2020 tax return. The deadline is May 17.

After that, you do not have to do anything to receive a Plus-Up payment. The IRS must process your return by August 16, so once your return is processed, you will receive a Plus-Up payment on your next direct deposit and stimulus check mailing.

However, special work must be done in order to receive the Recovery Rebate Credit. Specifically, you must complete this IRS worksheet and enter the results on line 30 of your 1040 or 1040-SR tax return.

The result will offset any taxes owed or increase your tax refund; if you receive a payment from the Recovery Rebate Credit, it will be part of your 2020 tax refund.

The IRS warns that many people may not receive the Recovery Rebate Credit or may receive less credit than they thought because of errors in calculating the credit. If you have already filed your 2020 tax return and believe you qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit, you must file an amended return.

How much you receive from either the Plus Up Payment or the Recovery Rebate Credit depends on how much you received from the three stimulus packages and how much your tax status has changed.

An extreme example is the theoretical individual above whose income drops from over $99,000 in 2019 to less than $75,000 in 2020 and receives $3,200. The same is true for married couples whose income drops from more than $198,000 to less than $150,000, who would receive $6,400. Dependents would receive even more.

Most people who qualify for the Plus Up Payment and Recovery Rebate Credit will probably receive much less than these amounts. However, there is no harm in trying.