Reader Question: Tax Rebate

Here's a question that we received as a follow-up to the April newsletter article on how to spend your tax refund and stimulus rebate:

My husband and I owe taxes; will we still get the rebate? Thanks in advance.
- Beverly

If you owe money on your 2007 tax return this year and meet the income qualifications for the stimulus rebate, you will still get the bonus check. Single tax filers with an income below $75,000 can receive up to $600. Couples with an income below $150,000 will get a rebate up to $1,200. And parents will receive  an additional $300 for each child under 17.

However, if you owe back-taxes to the IRS from a previous year at least a portion of your economic stimulus rebate will go toward that debt. The IRS discloses this in their online calculator but doesn't get into the specifics.

Emily Davidson – A former TransUnion insider and a member of Credit.com's expert team. Emily writes about credit reports, credit cards, loans and personal finance as the CreditBloggers.com editor.