All California “Middle Class Tax Refund” debit cards will expire and become inactive after April 30th. At that time, any remaining balance on the cards will be returned to the state government.
The “Middle Class Tax Refund” was a one-time inflation relief grant distributed by the California government from October 2022 to January 2023, aimed at providing economic relief to California residents. Eligible taxpayers received grants ranging from $200 to $1,050.
According to data at the time, some taxpayers received direct deposits, while the remaining received a debit card.
However, over three years have passed, and data from the Franchise Tax Board of California shows that only 90% of the debit cards have been activated and used. This means that nearly one million cards remain in an inactive state. Additionally, there are still millions of people with balances on their cards.
The tax authority’s website states that after April 30th, all “Middle Class Tax Refund” debit cards, whether activated or not, will have their balances refunded and become state government property.
California distributed approximately $9 billion in total as part of the “Middle Class Tax Refund” that year. The distribution criteria stipulated that the grants were only given to taxpayers who had resided in California for more than half of 2020 and were still California residents at the time of the grant distribution.
The criteria included: single individuals with incomes below $250,000 receiving $350; married couples filing jointly receiving $700; additional $350 for eligible dependents, and so on.
After many years, many people’s debit cards have either never been activated or are no longer in use. The California tax authority’s website provides detailed instructions on how to activate the debit card.
Of course, for taxpayers who received their refunds via direct deposit during the 2020 tax filing and have not changed their account information, the “Middle Class Tax Refund” amount was directly deposited into their personal bank accounts, so there is no need to worry about the debit card expiring.
The distribution of refund debit cards by California in the past also led to a series of obstacles and confusion. For instance, some taxpayers complained online that the money on their cards had been stolen before they even received the debit card.
Some taxpayers mentioned that using the debit card was not very convenient, as they had to pay fees if they withdrew money from an ATM.
Furthermore, since the company responsible for distributing the debit cards, Money Network, which had won the state government contract, was headquartered in New York, some taxpayers mistook the received debit card for junk mail or a scam and discarded it.
For assistance with activation, reissuance, or issues such as lost/stolen debit cards, taxpayers can refer to the information on the California tax authority’s website. However, it’s essential for all actions to be completed before April 30th.