The Golden State Stimulus was a California pandemic relief program that sent one-time payments of $600 to $1,200 to lower- and middle-income residents based on their 2020 state tax returns. It ran in two rounds during 2021, and the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) issued its final payments on July 15, 2022.1Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus The program is closed. If you missed the filing deadlines, there is no way to claim a payment now.
Who Qualified and How Much They Received
The program had two rounds with different rules.
Golden State Stimulus I paid $600 to people who qualified for the California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC) on their 2020 return with a California Adjusted Gross Income (CA AGI) of $30,000 or less. It also covered filers using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) who earned $75,000 or less in CA AGI: $600 on its own, or $1,200 if they also qualified for CalEITC.2Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus Payment – Golden State Grant Program
Golden State Stimulus II expanded eligibility to any 2020 filer with a CA AGI between $1 and $75,000 who was not claimed as a dependent and had not received a GSS I payment. The base amount was $600, with an extra $500 for a qualifying dependent. Filers who had already received GSS I were not eligible for the GSS II base payment but could still collect the $500 dependent credit.3Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus II Payments
Both rounds required that you lived in California for more than half of 2020 and were still a California resident on the date the FTB issued your payment. People who moved out of state before their payment went out lost eligibility.3Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus II Payments
The Deadlines That Closed the Program
Qualifying for either round required filing a 2020 California tax return by October 15, 2021. ITIN filers who had applied for but not yet received their ITIN by that date had until February 15, 2022.4Franchise Tax Board. October 15 Tax Deadline Approaching to File and Claim the Golden State Stimulus Those deadlines have passed, and no late-claim mechanism exists. Filing a 2020 return now will not produce a GSS payment.1Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus
If You Received a Check but Never Cashed It
GSS checks are valid for six months from the issue date. After that, you need to request a replacement from the FTB, and the process depends on how old the check is.
For a check between one and three years old, send a letter to the FTB’s Returned Warrant Desk with your name, the tax year, and the original check if you still have it. Processing takes about eight weeks. For a check older than three years, you need to file Form 3900A, the Replacement Warrant Claim form, and processing can take up to 18 months. Do not write “VOID” on the original check if you include it.5Franchise Tax Board. Help With Refunds
Mail replacement requests to:
Returned Warrant Desk MS F283
Franchise Tax Board
PO Box 942867
Sacramento, CA 94267-0001
Direct deposits appeared on bank statements under the description “FTB GSS,” which can help if you are checking old records to confirm whether a payment arrived.6Franchise Tax Board. Golden State Stimulus
Tax Treatment and Effect on Other Benefits
GSS payments are not taxable for California state income tax purposes.7Franchise Tax Board. California Golden State Stimulus Payments The IRS determined in early 2023 that most state pandemic relief payments, including California’s, did not need to be reported as federal income either. You should not have included a GSS payment as income on either return.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirmed that COVID-19 stimulus payments are not weighed in public charge determinations, so receiving GSS does not affect an immigration application. It also did not count against eligibility for SNAP or other non-cash federal assistance.8U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Public Charge Resources