Virginia

Virginians Getting One-Time Tax Rebates Up to $250, $500 for Married Couples

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Eligible taxpayers will receive a one-time payment of up to $250 per individual and up to $500 per married couple, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation.

The department expects to issue over 3.2 million rebates total.

The General Assembly approved the one-time payments earlier this summer with bipartisan support. Tax Commissioner Craig Burns said the rebates won’t go out all at once. According to Gov. Glenn Youngkin's office, rebates are being processed "first in/first out."

About 250,000 rebates will be issued per day, six days per week. The Department of Taxation expects to issue 2.9 million rebates by Oct. 10 and will continue issuing rebates through the end of the calendar year, until all rebates are issued. To be eligible, taxpayers must have filed by Nov. 1.

The payments Virginians receive depend on the application of any deductions, subtractions or credits, according to an update Burns gave to lawmakers Sept. 13. If someone owes money in court fines, for example, that money will be subtracted from their rebate, Burns said. Any issues will need to be resolved with the debt setoff agency.

As per the budget, rebates for returns filed by July 1 must be sent by Oct. 17 and returns filed after that must be issued within four months of filing. After a rebate is issued, direct deposits will take a few days to arrive and checks will take a week or more, Burns said.

The rebate is part of a larger effort by the government of Virginia to provide citizens financial relief.

“As Virginians face high inflation and prices coming from policies set in Washington, these one-time tax rebates will help families lower the cost of living,” Youngkin said in a press release. “Past administrations have overtaxed Virginians and by returning taxpayer money to Virginia’s taxpayers we are ensuring that hard working Virginians get to keep more of their paycheck during these difficult economic times.”

Taxpayers who received a state tax refund this year through direct deposit this year likely will receive their rebate in that same account, while all others will receive theirs via paper checks sent by mail.

The agency doesn’t have the capacity to release all rebates at once, causing the stagger of releases despite adding more resources to get the job done, according to Heather Cooper, a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Taxation.

In order to help Virginians check the status of rebates, the Department of Taxation has launched two new tools. Taxpayers will be able to find out if they’re eligible for rebates either online or by phone, as well as the amount they’re eligible for and when they can expect to receive it.

Taxpayers can go to tax.virginia.gov/rebate and check their eligibility for the rebate.

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