In recent days, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that there are more than 940,000 people across the United States who have not yet claimed tax refunds for the 2020 tax period.
This represents almost a total of one billion dollars in unclaimed tax refunds from the IRS that will be archived if people do not file their 2020 tax returns by May 17, 2024. We tell you how to find out if there is a beautiful check with several zeros in your name in an IRS drawer and how to claim it.
Why Are Not Americans Claiming Tax Refunds From the IRS?
Often, the IRS is left with hundreds of thousands of unclaimed tax refunds because people do not file their tax return, either because they are unaware that they have money to claim, or because they lack information on how to file a return correctly.
In addition, other taxpayers do not claim their money because, simply, they do not have the required documentation to support their claim, such as receipts, invoices, forms and financial records so that it is proven that, indeed, they deserve the money.
According to IRS data from 2020, the median refund in the entire US was $920, and the states with the most unclaimed refunds were Texas (93,400), California (88,200), Florida (53,200) and New York (51,400).
Claiming Your 2020 Tax Refund: What to Do
“We want taxpayers to claim these refunds, but time is running out for people who may have overlooked or forgotten about these refunds,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said recently. “There’s a May 17 deadline to file these returns, so taxpayers should start soon to make sure they don’t miss out,” he added.
The IRS guidelines allow taxpayers to claim tax refunds within a maximum period of 3 years, but there was an extraordinary extension due to the coronavirus pandemic. Thus, people can claim 2020 refunds in the year 2024, and if they do not do so, that money will become the property of the Treasury of the United States of America.
How Can I Get My Unclaimed Tax Refunds?
You can access your personal tax records online or by mail. These records include transcripts of previous tax returns, tax account information, wage and income statements, and verification of non-filing letters. If you need a transcript for your business, you can get a business tax transcript.
To access your tax records online, you can log in to your online account. This will allow you to view your tax records quickly and easily. By doing so, you will be able to:
- Find out how much you owe in taxes.
- View your payment history.
- Check your adjusted gross income (AGI) for the previous year.
- Access other tax records relevant to you.
Know how to do it by visiting the official IRS website here. There you’ll find what you need to know and the steps to follow to claim your 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 tax refunds, if it corresponds.
