Railroad Retirement Board
Railroad
Retirement Annuitants Must File a 2007 Tax Return to Receive Stimulus Payments
(Rebates)
Starting
in May, the U.S. Treasury will begin sending economic stimulus payments, often
referred to as rebates, to more than 130 million individuals.
Most
taxpayers do not need to take any extra steps to receive these payments. However, some railroad retirement annuitants,
social security beneficiaries, and recipients of certain veterans’ benefits,
who might not otherwise need to file a 2007 tax return, must do so to receive
the stimulus payment. The return must
show at least $3,000 in qualifying income.
Qualifying
income includes social security benefits, the Social Security Equivalent Benefit
(SSEB) portion of a railroad retirement tier I benefit, certain veterans’
benefits and earned income, such as wages and net earnings from self-employment
that are includable in income. For
people filing joint tax returns, only a total of $3,000 of qualifying income
from both spouses is required.
To figure their
qualifying income, annuitants who would not otherwise file a 2007 tax return
should add together the following amounts:
· The SSEB portion of tier I benefits or
special guaranty amounts reported in
· Social security benefits reported in
· Veterans’ benefits received in 2007,
including veterans’ disability compensation, disability pensions, or survivors’
benefits received from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
· Wages reported on Form W-2.
· Net earnings from self-employment that
are includable in income.
A
Form 1040A illustration on the IRS Web site (www.irs.gov) shows the limited
number of lines that need to be filled out by recipients of social security,
railroad retirement and veterans’ benefits who are not required to file an
income tax return but are doing so to receive a stimulus payment. The key line for reporting 2007 benefits is Line
14a of Form 1040A. The IRS has advised
that while this line only mentions social security, railroad retirement
annuitants should use this line even if their only benefits were railroad
retirement or veterans’ benefits. In
addition, taxpayers in these groups should write the words “Stimulus Payment”
at the top of the Form 1040A.
The IRS is also
reminding taxpayers with social security, railroad retirement or veterans’
benefits who have already filed but did not report their qualifying benefits on
either Line 14a of Form 1040A (or Line 20a of Form 1040) that they may need to
file an amended return in some situations to receive a larger stimulus
payment. Taxpayers who already have
filed but did not report these benefits can file an amended return by using
Form 1040X.
Extensive and
detailed information on the stimulus payments is available on the IRS Web site
and annuitants are strongly encouraged to visit the site.
Individuals who
need to file a return this year to receive a stimulus payment may be able to
take advantage of thousands of free tax preparation sites nationwide for
low-income and elderly taxpayers.
The Volunteer
Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program provides help to low and moderate income
taxpayers. Call 1-800-906-9887 to locate
the nearest VITA site.
The Tax
Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Program provides free tax help to people age
60 and older. As part of the
IRS-sponsored TCE Program, AARP offers the Tax-Aide counseling program at more
than 7,000 sites nationwide during the filing season. To find an AARP Tax-Aide site call
1-888-227-7669 or visit the AARP Web site at www.aarp.org.
Public Affairs 312-751-4777
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