The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service have distributed more than half of the $410 billion in stimulus payments to individuals that Congress approved earlier this month.
The $242 billion in payments disbursed so far have gone to approximately 90 million households, according to a statement from the Treasury Department Wednesday.
The first round $1,400 payments were mostly sent by direct deposit, which some recipients started receiving this past weekend, the statement said. Some payments appeared starting last Friday, but the official payment date is Wednesday, so some individuals may not have been able to access the money until then.
The first batch of payments primarily went to eligible taxpayers who provided direct deposit information on their 2019 or 2020 returns, including people who don’t typically file a return but who successfully used the non-filers tool on IRS.gov last year, the Treasury said. The Treasury said it has also mailed roughly 150,000 checks worth approximately $442 million.
