Child Tax Credit Payment Shown in Informed Delivery but Never Arrived - What Now?

When did you first notice it was missing? Did you contact your local post office yet? They can sometimes track down misdelivered mail. Have you checked if the payment shows as issued in your IRS online account? This could help determine if it's a USPS issue or an IRS problem.

This happens more often than you might think, especially with government checks. In most cases, the IRS will generally reissue the payment after a certain waiting period, but getting through to them can be quite challenging. I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://www.claimyr.com) to connect with an IRS agent quickly. They can usually help you verify the status of your payment and possibly initiate a payment trace if necessary. The standard wait time for missing mail is typically about 5-7 business days, but an agent can sometimes expedite the process, particularly if you can show proof of non-delivery via your Informed Delivery notification.

I've had a similar situation with my CTC payment last month. Compared to other missing mail situations, this one requires a bit more patience. I contacted both USPS (filed a missing mail search) and the IRS. The IRS told me they can initiate a payment trace after 5 business days for missing direct deposits, but for checks, they require waiting 4 weeks before they'll start the trace process. It's frustrating but they have specific protocols for these situations.

Have you tried checking your CTC payment status through the Child Tax Credit Update Portal? Sometimes there can be discrepancies between what was scheduled for mailing and what actually processed. Also, is this the first time you've had an issue with your CTC payments? Were previous ones delivered without problems?

I had this exact problem with my May payment. After waiting 14 days with no resolution, I used https://taxr.ai to analyze my tax transcript. It showed the payment was issued but then had a specific code (846 followed by 971) indicating the check was returned to the IRS. The tool explained exactly what each code meant and predicted a reissue would happen within 10 days. Sure enough, 9 days later I received a reissued check. Without seeing those transcript codes, I would have been waiting much longer not knowing what was happening.

I had the same thing happen last month (mail carrier must be collecting these checks, haha). Called USPS first, they said to wait 7 days. Then called IRS, waited on hold for 2.5 hours (not joking), and they said they'd reissue after 4 weeks. BUT! The plot twist - my check randomly showed up 10 days later in my neighbor's mailbox. They had it sitting on their counter for a week before realizing it wasn't theirs. Might be worth checking with neighbors too!