HOUSTON – If your second stimulus check never arrived, you may be able to track it down by requesting a payment trace. This won’t work for everyone but if you have checked the IRS Get my Payment portal and it shows your payment was already direct deposited or mailed, but you haven’t received it, after a certain number of days, you can request a trace. According to CNET, here is how long you have to wait:
- 5 days since the deposit date in Get my Payment and your bank says they haven’t received it
- 4 weeks since it was mailed by check to a standard address
- 6 weeks since it was mailed and you have a forwarding address on file with the local post office
- 9 weeks since it was mailed and you have a foreign address
How to request a payment trace
- You can call the IRS at 1-800-919-9835. You have to listen to the recorded message before you can connect to an agent to make the request.
- Or you can mail or fax a completed form 3911. That is a Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund.
To complete Form 3911, the IRS provides the following instructions:
- Write “EIP” on the top of the form (EIP stands for Economic Impact Payment)
- Complete the form answering all refund questions as they relate to your payment
- When completing item 7 under Section 1:
- Check the box for “Individual” as the type of return.
- Enter “2020” as the Tax Period.
- Do not write anything for the Date Filed.
- Sign the form. If you file married filing joint, both spouses must sign the form.
Mail the form to:
Austin Internal Revenue Service
3651 S Interregional Hwy 35
Austin, TX 78741
You should not mail Form 3911 if you’ve already requested a trace by phone. And you should not request a Payment Trace to determine if you were eligible to get a check, or to confirm the amount you should have received, the IRS said.
