The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is asking people who received payments for a deceased taxpayer to return the money to the government. However, some legal experts say there is no law requiring people to do that.
Some of the more than 130 million economic impact payments that went out to taxpayers as part of an economic relief package were sent to dead people. That is mainly because of a lag in reporting data on who is deceased. It’s the first time the agency has asked for the money back.
Wednesday (5/6/20) the IRS updated its website, stating that if a person died before a payment was issued, the money should be returned. It also provides instructions on how to do so. The IRS and Treasury have not said what would happen if these payments were not returned or otherwise repaid.
Do you think people who received impact payments for family members who are deceased should return the money?
