If you usually receive physical retirement checks or tax refunds, this may be of interest to you. Donald Trump’s administration recently took a significant step toward eliminating paper checks.
Currently, the federal government has approximately six months (until September 30) to transition almost all of its payments to electronic methods. There is only one reason: to cut costs, prevent fraud, and speed up transactions. However, not everything is as simple.
If you are one of the over 450,000 people who still receive benefits and tax refunds by mail, you will need to update your information in order to receive the funds via direct deposit, prepaid debit card, or another digital method. Many people will find this easy.
This applies, of course, to the majority of payments and money transfers made by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and other federal agencies.
The IRS will stop sending paper checks: how it affects Americans
However, there may be challenges for some people, particularly older adults or those who do not have easy access to the internet. What is the good news? Trump’s order states that there will be exceptions for those who face difficulties. Of course, it remains unclear how this aid process will work.
On the other hand, Social Security offices may be overwhelmed. Imagine thousands of people updating their information by calling or visiting branches.
However, many locations have closed due to budget cuts. Isn’t this a mess? Although the government promises efficiency, we will have to see how they handle support for those who require practical assistance.
Why eliminate checks, if they always worked well?
The White House claims that paper payments are slow, expensive, and insecure. Consider this: every check they print requires postage, paper, and ink. Additionally, fraud involving stolen or altered checks is a growing problem (more on that later).
Electronic payments, on the other hand, are instant, inexpensive, and allow you to track everything in real time. Of course, it is not a magical solution. Cybercriminals exist, but the risk of having your check stolen from your mailbox is eliminated.
This is the most compelling evidence supporting Trump’s argument for moving forward: check fraud totaled more than $688 million between February and August 2023. Yes, there are no extra numbers in the figure. And that is all that has been detected. Mail theft has become a profitable business for scammers. How do they do this?
Last year, two former postal employees were accused of stealing $4 million in Treasury checks from JFK airport. Among the items stolen were pandemic stimulus checks, tax refunds, and Social Security payments.
However, these are not isolated cases. The FBI and the Postal Inspection Service warn that these types of crimes will nearly double between 2021 and 2023.
Also See:- Claim $1,400 stimulus check now: If you don’t, there’s a risk to lose the money forever
