Congress passed the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 in early 2008 and numerous other tax changes during the year.  The IRS  waited for taxpayers to file a 2007 return and then calculated a $0 to $600 refund for each taxpayer (double for married returns) plus up to $300 for children that qualify for the child tax credit.  If you had at least $3000 of earned income from wages or business, social security benefits or pension, you qualified for the minimum $300 even if you had no 2007 income tax.  You had to file a 2007 return timely to get the advance refund.  If you did not have this type of income you did not qualify for an advance refund, if you had no tax liability.  The refund credit phases out if you more than $75,000 ($150,000 for Marrieds) Adjusted Gross Income (AGI).  The advance refund is figured on your 2007 tax return.  You should have received your refund by the end of 2008 or correspondence if the IRS applied this refund to another tax debt.  We will assume that our clients received the amount they qualified for on 2007 return unless they let us know that it was not received.

Many may not realize that the final credit amount is calculated on your 2008 return results.  So if you did not get the maximum amount based upon the 2007 results and now qualify for more, there is an additional credit available to you on your 2008 income tax return which will be claimed on line 70.  This will apply to those who had children born in 2008, those who did not have enough income to meet the minimum in the earlier year or those who had too much income and the refund was phased out and then their income decreased in 2008.  If you did not file a 2007 return by October 15, 2008 then you will need to claim the full Stimulus refund amount on your 2008 tax return.

To calculate your advance refund (based on 2007 tax return) or credit (on 2008 tax return) go here: 
http://www.thetaxbook.com/updates/2007/2-23-2008_Update/stimulus_worksheet.pdf

The following might help you answer any lingering questions about the advance refund:
http://www.thetaxbook.com/updates/2007/2-23-2008_Update/wns-24-25.pdf