Tax Question

[NeedMoreFans]

I am about to do my taxes, and I came up with a question...

 

Do we have to count the $1200 stimulus check we got from the government last spring as income from 2008? I didn't think we did. I thought that money was not going to be taxed, and it wouldn't add to my taxable income from 2008. I tried looking this up, but finding answers to tax questions is near impossible.

[chrisisoutrunning]

I did my taxes online using TaxAct and there was a specific screen for me to enter the amount of money I received from the stimulus checks earlier in the year. I could be wrong, but I don't believe you count it as income, but I'm just an engineer, not a CPA, so take my word for what it's worth.

[And That]

You don't have to count it as income, but you do need to know how much you received - you might be eligible for a stimulus tax credit if your 2008 tax situation differs from 2007 (the year the stimulus payments were based on). For more information and a worksheet (if you're doing your taxes on paper), go to page 61 of the instructions for form 1040. You'll input the result on line 70 of the 1040, or line 42 on the 1040A.

[temke]

You don't have to count it as income, but you do need to know how much you received - you might be eligible for a stimulus tax credit if your 2008 tax situation differs from 2007 (the year the stimulus payments were based on). For more information and a worksheet (if you're doing your taxes on paper), go to page 61 of the instructions for form 1040. You'll input the result on line 70 of the 1040, or line 42 on the 1040A.

bingo. for instance, we received $1500 (me, wife, kid #1), and had kid #2 in august. this qualified us for another $300 for kid #2.