Click here for a full list of undeliverable refunds (Excel Spreadsheet) For immediate release (IRS Media Relations): Oct. 23, 2008 ST. PAUL — The Internal Revenue Service is looking for South Dakotans who are missing nearly 640 economic stimulus checks totaling about $367,000 and more than 160 regular refund checks totaling about $155,500 that were returned by the U.S. Postal Service due to mailing address errors. All a taxpayer has to do is update his or her address once. The IRS will then send out all checks due. Stimulus Checks It is crucial that taxpayers who may be due a stimulus check update their addresses with the IRS by Nov. 28, 2008. By law, economic stimulus checks must be sent out by Dec. 31 of this year. The undeliverable economic stimulus checks average $575 in South Dakota. The “Where’s My Stimulus Payment?" tool on IRS.gov is the quickest and easiest way for a taxpayer to check the status of a stimulus check and receive instructions on how to update his or her address. Taxpayers without internet access should call 1-866-234-2942. Regular Refunds The regular refund checks that were returned to the IRS average $658 in South Dakota. These checks are resent as soon as taxpayers update their address. Taxpayers can update their addresses with the “Where’s My Refund?” tool on IRS.gov. It enables taxpayers to check the status of their refunds. A taxpayer must submit his or her social security number, filing status and amount of refund shown on their 2007 return. The tool will provide the status of their refund and in some cases provide instructions on how to resolve delivery problems. Taxpayers checking on a refund over the phone will be given instructions on how to update their addresses. Taxpayers can access a telephone version of “Where’s My Refund?” by calling 1-800-829-1954. Unsure? Taxpayers not sure of which type of check they may be due should check on a potential economic stimulus check first because of the looming deadline. See instructions above. For Most People The vast majority of checks mailed out by the IRS reach their rightful owner every year. Only a very small percent are returned by the U.S. Postal Service as undeliverable. Through September 2008, the government distributed 116 million economic stimulus payments with only about 279,000 checks being undeliverable. Meanwhile, the IRS has distributed more than 105 million regular refunds this year with only about 104,000 being undeliverable. In both cases, well under one percent of refunds or stimulus checks were undeliverable. Avoiding Future Problems The IRS encourages taxpayers to choose direct deposit when they file their return because it puts an end to lost, stolen or undeliverable checks. Taxpayers can receive refunds directly into personal checking or savings accounts. Direct deposit is available for filers of both paper and electronic returns. The IRS also encourages taxpayers to file their tax returns electronically because e-file eliminates the risk of lost paper returns. E-file also reduces errors and speeds up refunds. -30-
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Sioux
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