The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) headquarters building in Washington.

J. David Ake/AP

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J. David Ake/AP

About 1 million taxpayers will automatically receive special payments of up to $1,400 from the IRS in the coming weeks. Funds are deposited directly into eligible individuals’ bank accounts or mailed by check.

The IRS said it is paying out about $2.4 billion to taxpayers who did not claim a refund credit on their 2021 tax return. People who missed one of the COVID stimulus payments or received less than the full amount were eligible to claim the credit. But the IRS said Friday it found that many eligible taxpayers had not done so.

“When we looked at our internal data, we found that one million taxpayers had failed to claim this complex credit even though they were actually eligible,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement.

Here’s more about the unexpected money this group of taxpayers will soon receive:

What are the chances that I will receive a check?

Sorry, it’s probably pretty low. The IRS said most taxpayers eligible for the federal stimulus payments, officially known as Economic Impact Payments, have already received them.

The special payments announced by the IRS will be sent to those taxpayers who filed a 2021 tax return but left the refund credit data field blank or filled the field with $0 when they were actually eligible for the credit.

How will this work?

Eligible taxpayers do not need to take any action. Payments will be made automatically this month and should be received by direct deposit or check by the end of January 2025. They will be sent to the bank account listed on the taxpayer’s 2023 tax return or to the address on file with the IRS.

Payments vary, but the maximum is $1,400 per person. The IRS has posted information online about eligibility and how the payment is calculated.

The IRS plans to notify eligible taxpayers of the special payment in separate letters.

What if I haven’t filed my 2021 tax return yet?

You may still be able to receive the money. However, according to the IRS, taxpayers must file a tax return and claim the refund credit by April 15, 2025, even if income from a job, business or other source was minimal or non-existent.

How many rounds of COVID stimulus payments were there?

There were three rounds of payments to households affected by the pandemic, worth a total of $814 billion. The IRS based the amounts taxpayers received based on their income, tax filing status and the number of children or eligible dependents they had.

In March 2020, eligible individuals under the CARES Act received up to $1,200 per income taxpayer and $500 per child. In December 2020, eligible individuals received up to $600 per income taxpayer and $600 per child under the Consolidated Appropriations Act. In March 2021, eligible individuals received up to $1,400 per income taxpayer and $1,400 per child under the American Rescue Plan Act.