Gov. Kemp Approves State Income Tax Refund Bill — Who Gets a $500 Check in 2023?

If you were hoping for another round of relief payments in 2023, you’re in luck — if you live in Georgia, that is. On March 15, 2023, Governor Brian Kemp signed the State Income Tax Refund Bill (HB 162) into law, which calls for Georgia residents to receive a special state income tax refund. So, how much will the 2023 tax refund for Georgians be and who qualifies?

According to a press release issued by the Officer of the Governor, the AFY 2023 budget Kemp signed on March 10 identifies over $1 billion in surplus funds, all of which he intends to give back to residents. While the state tax refund amounts do vary based on your filing status, there are a few things you’ll need to do in order to qualify for a payment.

Read on to find out how much your Georgia state tax refund will be and when you’ll get it.

After receiving an overwhelming amount of support from the General Assembly, Kemp was able to approve the 2023 State Income Tax Refund Bill or HB162. The income tax refund bill allocates more than $1 billion to go back into the pockets of “hardworking Georgians,” as Kemp put it in a tweet.

Like last year, Georgia has a budget surplus, which means it has received more income and revenue combined than needed to meet its budget expectations. And while some of the surplus money will likely go toward road building and other expenditures, more than $1 billion is going back to some Georgia taxpayers.

The Department of Revenue (DOR) hasn't announced the specific requirements taxpayers will need to meet in order to qualify for an income tax rebate in 2023 yet. Thankfully, an FAQ page is in the works and should be able to address all Georgians’ questions once it's active.

However, based on Sen. Elena Parent’s recent commentary regarding the bill, it appears you must have owed state income tax in order to qualify for the rebate.

Parent, who opposed HB 162, said, “Those who don’t owe state income tax because they earn too little despite working full time will not see any money from this bill. These are the very folks for whom a tax rebate is the most meaningful.”

Aside from owing state income tax, the DOR requires that you file your 2021 and 2022 taxes before a refund can be issued. While some people will receive as much as $500 (married taxpayers who file joint returns), others will receive $250 if they filed single or married filing separately. As for head-of-household filers, they can expect to receive a maximum refund of $375.

If you already filed your 2021 taxes and submit your 2022 return on or before April 18, 2023, you can expect to receive your income tax rebate by July 1, 2023. In the event the DOR follows the same guidelines as it did in 2022, it may apply the 2023 tax credit to a qualifying individual’s outstanding state tax balance. This means they wouldn’t receive a deposit or paper check.

Although the DOR hasn't set up a page designated for Georgians to check the status of their expected one-time 2023 state tax refund yet, it does have an active website you can use to check the status of the refund you expect to receive after filing your annual state income tax return.