The Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Treasury have approved $108 million for Guam's Second Economic Impact Payment (EIP 2), and $41.3 million for the CNMI.
EIP 2 was authorized by the Covid-Related Tax Reform Act of 2020 (CRTRA) which was signed into law by the President on Dec. 27, 2020. “After Congress makes its laws, federal agencies at a federal and local level have to make them work," Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said. "Throughout this pandemic, we’ve met the program requirements of an ever-changing federal bureaucracy to get people the help they need as quickly as possible."
The IRS and U.S. Treasury have approved the advance of 90 percent to be transferred to the government of Guam after plan approval. Mailing of checks will begin by the end of next week.
CNMI Gov. Ralph DLG. Torres announced on Wednesday that the CNMI 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit and Second Economic Impact Payments Plan has been approved by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
The Department of Finance - Division of Revenue & Taxation (DRT) is expected to process nearly 31,000 Second Economic Impact Payments (EIP2) advances. Eligibility and payment amount will be determined based on only 2019 tax returns. Each eligible individual is entitled to a $600 payment ($1,200 for those filing a joint return) and $600 per qualifying child.
DRT has immediately prioritized the configuration of the tax system to comply with the approved implementation plan and expects the first batch of payments to be processed as soon as next week. Valid direct deposit information provided to the Department of Finance in the first stimulus will be used in the second stimulus.
Finance will reopen the online stimulus portal within the next few days on the department website for taxpayers to submit direct deposit information to receive their payment as soon as possible. Portal security features are in place to ensure taxpayer identity and avoid errors in bank information.
According to the approved plan, a 60-day deadline (March 21, 2021) is in place for DRT to release advance EIP2 payments, after which taxpayers can claim their payment as a Recovery Rebate Credit on the 2020 1040-CM Income Tax Return.
“We appreciate the community’s patience as the Department of Finance expeditiously processes this new round of stimulus payments for our community,” Torres said.
“We are grateful to the President and the U.S. Congress for enacting this important legislation and the U.S. Treasury for their approval of our plan, so that we can get this much needed assistance for our people. I want to personally thank Secretary of Finance David DLG. Atalig, Director of Revenue and Taxation Tracy B. Norita, and the whole Finance team for their hard work and leadership in initiating another smooth delivery of stimulus checks.”
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