Here's What You Need to Remember: Despite the success of already disbursing one hundred sixty-three million stimulus checks, there appears to be millions still who are left on the sidelines, often wondering if and when their stimulus funds will ever arrive.

Earlier this week, the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department announced in their latest press release that roughly two million more $1,400 coronavirus stimulus checks have been disbursed as part of the seventh batch of payments under President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan.

This newest batch now boosts the total number sent out to approximately one hundred sixty-three million, with a value of about $384 billion. And in all, more than 85 percent of the $450 billion total earmarked for stimulus funds have either landed in bank accounts or are in transit.

It appears that with this seventh batch, the IRS placed special emphasis on recent tax return filers, as more than 1.2 million payments were sent to those who fit into this category.

Know that for the past several weeks, the federal government had been pressing Americans who do not receive federal benefits or typically file tax returns to submit one as soon as possible in order to provide their payment information to receive the stimulus checks.

For those who have been patiently waiting for “plus-up” or supplemental payments, take note that this batch included nearly seven hundred thirty thousand of such checks.

Despite the success of already disbursing one hundred sixty-three million stimulus checks, there appears to be millions still who are left on the sidelines, often wondering if and when their stimulus funds will ever arrive.

In the worst-case scenario, a U.S. taxpayer may continue to sit empty-handed throughout 2021. If that is the case, know that all is not lost. Those without a check by January 2022 can file a Recovery Rebate Credit during tax season next year. This obviously isn’t the ideal situation, but the cash will surely arrive at some point.

Keep in mind that the Recovery Rebate Credit can also be tapped into for missing stimulus checks in previous rounds. Just make sure to file that by Tax Day’s extended deadline of May 17.

The IRS website states that “if you didn’t get any payments or got less than the full amounts, you may qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2020 tax return to claim the credit even if you don’t normally file.”

Frustrated individuals in need of some sort of answer regarding their payment status can likely garner that information via the “Get My Payment” tool at www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment. Others can request an IRS payment trace, which can be put into action by calling the IRS at 800-919-9835 or mailing or faxing a completed Form 3911, “Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund.”

U.S. taxpayers also have the option of calling the IRS Economic Impact Payment department at 800-919-9835—but be warned that “IRS live phone assistance is extremely limited at this time,” according to the agency’s website.

Ethen Kim Lieser is a Minneapolis-based Science and Tech Editor who has held posts at Google, The Korea Herald, Lincoln Journal Star, AsianWeek, and Arirang TV. Follow or contact him on LinkedIn. This article first appeared earlier this year.

Image: Reuters.