Roughly one million California residents still have Middle Class Tax Refund money owed to them, and they have just two weeks to retrieve it.
About 9.6 million Californians received the historic Middle Class Tax Refund Debit Card in the mail between Oct. 2022 and Jan. 2023 amid the state budget surplus. The funds were flagged as "post-pandemic emergency inflation relief" back when the cost of gas and groceries surged across the state. The tax rebate amounted to hundreds of dollars per Californian.
Now, four years later, nearly one million people have not spent the money allotted to them, and nearly $240 million remains unspent. All of that money will disappear back into the state's General Fund at the end of April, according to the state's Franchise Tax Board.
According to the California Franchise Tax Board, which oversees relief funds, the majority of Californians used their debit card dollars immediately upon receipt, but a fair share have never activated their balances.
Learn more about the Middle Class Tax Refund here.
The board estimates that 960,000 people have never activated or used their debit cards. Of those who received them, 4.5 million Californians still have money left if they access it before April 30.
How To See If You Have Money Owed:
If you received a Middle Class Tax Refund (MCTR) debit card and did not activate it, you were mailed an activation reminder letter with instructions for activating your debit card.
If you never received it or need assistance with activation, replacement, or a lost or stolen MCTR card, you can call 1-800-240-0223 for help.
Why haven't people used the state-sent debit cards?
There are a variety of reasons that people may not have activated their cards.
With millions still in unclaimed debit card funds as of April 15, 2026, "the FTB does not have knowledge as to why some cardholders are not activating their cards, but we worked to engage them with letter campaigns and social media campaigns, reminding them to activate and spend," a spokesperson from the Franchise Tax Board told Patch.
A recent check through the social media accounts did not reveal any final warning of the card's expiration between Feb. 2026 and April, tax season.
According to the Franchise Tax Board, "all Middle Class Tax Refund prepaid debit card accounts, whether activated or not, will expire April 30, 2026, in accordance with the Better for Families Act of 2022. Any remaining funds in the prepaid debit card accounts will be returned to the State of California General Fund."
While some didn't feel they needed the funds, others just forgot about the cards altogether when they failed to work upon receipt.
Many attempted to use problematic debit cards but set them aside when it was declined by the bank or retailers.
What to do next:
To activate your card, check your balance, or resolve issues with your debit card, contact Money Network at 1-800-240-0223 and follow the prompts.
A call to the Money Network can reveal hundreds of dollars awaiting transfer. However, following the automated prompts and transferring the money to the bank on file may not always work. A Money Network representative can help successfully guide users through the money transfer process if the state has deactivated the debit card, "to prevent fraudulent access to the accounts," a Money Network employee told Patch. After answering verification questions, the card can be reactivated for immediate use.
The time to check the debit card balance and access any refunds remaining is limited, the spokesperson from the Franchise Tax Board told Patch.
When every debit card expires at the end of April, the unused funds will be returned to the California General Fund, according to the state. What the state will do with those funds remains to be seen.
Have you had trouble with your debit card? Let your Patch editor know!
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