President Donald Trump keeps promising to send checks to Americans. But what is the status of those pledges in 2026?
Throughout his second term, Trump has repeatedly promised to send direct payments to Americans as a result of his economic policies. While he has followed through on his “Warrior dividends” and “Trump Accounts” plans, stimulus checks from DOGE savings and tariffs are still up in the air.
Trump’s evident enthusiasm for sending Americans money is reminiscent of his desire to deliver stimulus checks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump’s signature was included on those checks—a political move that even former President Joe Biden praised.
Here’s what Trump has said about sending direct payments to Americans during his second term in office.
DOGE dividend checks
Last year, the Trump administration backed a possible plan to send every U.S. household a dividend check from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk, former head of DOGE, signaled support for sending checks of about $5,000 back to taxpayers in the form of a “DOGE dividend.”
The idea generated buzz after Azoria investment firm CEO James Fishback shared a four-page proposal on social media platform X urging Musk to send checks to taxpayers based on the $2 trillion in cuts that DOGE has promised to carry out.
Trump backed the idea in comments to reporters last year.
“I love it. A 20% dividend, so to speak, for the money that we’re saving by going after the waste and fraud and abuse and all of the other things that are happening. I think it’s a great idea,” he said, adding that the payments “could be a lot.”
The initial mission of DOGE was to cut spending and slash the size of the federal government. The non-governmental agency was met with fierce backlash after it carried out widespread layoffs early last year.
However, it’s not clear what the status of DOGE is now. The former head of DOGE, Musk, left the administration in June following a public spat with Trump, and a number of DOGE employees have reportedly been transferred to other agencies, according to Reuters.
“That doesn’t exist,” Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor told Reuters in November when asked about DOGE’s status.
Tariff checks
Trump said in November that “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid” from tariff revenue collected by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents.
“All money left over from the $2000 payments made to low and middle income USA Citizens, from the massive Tariff Income pouring into our Country from foreign countries, which will be substantial, will be used to SUBSTANTIALLY PAY DOWN NATIONAL DEBT,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
The White House has not laid out a clear plan for the tariffs, which Trump has repeatedly claimed are making the U.S. a lot of money. It’s also not clear who exactly would qualify for tariff stimulus checks.
In a January interview with The New York Times, Trump questioned whether he had made that promise.
“You’ve promised $2,000 checks to Americans based off of your tariff revenues. When can they expect those?” New York Times reporter Katie Rogers asked.
“I did do that? When did I do that?” Trump responded.
Trump later backtracked, saying that tariff rebate checks could be sent out “toward the end of the year.” However, a possible Supreme Court ruling against his tariffs later this year could force the U.S. to send back any revenue made from the tariffs.
Trump has also argued that he does not need congressional approval to send out direct payments despite only Congress having the authority to disburse funds.
“No, I don’t believe we do. We have it coming in from other sources,” Trump told The New York Times when asked about congressional approval.
Warrior Dividend
Trump announced in December that 1.45 million military service members would receive a $1,776 check ahead of Christmas because of tariff revenue and his “One, Big, Beautiful Bill” signed in July 2025.
“1,450,000 military service members will receive a special, we call warrior dividend before Christmas, a warrior dividend. In honor of our nation’s founding in 1776, we are sending every soldier $1,776. Think of that. And the checks are already on the way,” Trump said during his speech.
“We made a lot more money than anybody thought because of tariffs, and the bill helped us along. Nobody deserves it more than our military,” he added.
Despite Trump’s claims that the checks were paid for by tariffs and the “big beautiful bill,” online publication Defense One reported that the funding for those checks actually came from reconciliation funds that were approved by Congress to subsidize housing allowances for service members.
A senior administration official told Defense One that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed the Pentagon to “disburse $2.6 billion as a one-time basic allowance for housing supplement” to all eligible service members.
Trump Accounts
New tax legislation aims to give a financial boost to children born during Trump’s second term through “Trump Accounts.”
The Treasury Department will give $1,000 to every newborn as long as their parent opens a “Trump Account.” The funds will be invested in the stock market by private firms, and that child will be able to access the money when they turn 18.
The account will operate as a traditional individual retirement account, with funds accessible for qualified purchases like higher education, buying a first home or starting a business.
Families can contribute up to $5,000 a year for a child’s “Trump Account.” Contributions for “Trump Accounts” will be open in July 2026, but interested parents of eligible children can fill out Form 4547 from the Internal Revenue Service to sign up for the program.
The accounts are available to every U.S. citizen born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028.
“This is a pro-family initiative that will help millions of Americans harness the strength of our economy to lift up the next generation. And they’ll really be getting a big jump on life,” Trump said in a statement on the program.
Direct health care payments
Trump has suggested that the government should send direct payments to Americans rather than to health insurers.
Rather than providing subsidies to insurers through tax credits, the federal government would send equivalent cash deposits to individuals so that they could purchase their own health insurance.
Trump’s suggestion came as Democrats criticized Republicans for allowing federal Affordable Care Act subsidies to expire at the end of last year, causing healthcare premiums to skyrocket for Americans.
The proposal would have scrapped federal tax credits and replaced them with equivalent cash payments.
“THE ONLY HEALTHCARE I WILL SUPPORT OR APPROVE IS SENDING MONEY DIRECTLY BACK TO THE PEOPLE, WITH NOTHING GOING TO THE BIG, FAT, RICH INSURANCE COMPANIES, WHO HAVE MADE $TRILLIONS, AND RIPPED OFF AMERICA LONG ENOUGH,” Trump wrote in a November Truth Social post “THE PEOPLE WILL BE ALLOWED TO NEGOTIATE & BUY THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, INSURANCE. POWER TO THE PEOPLE!”
He added: “This is the only way to have great Healthcare in America!!! GET IT DONE, NOW.”
The proposal did not gain any traction as the healthcare subsidies expired at the end of last year, resulting in millions of Americans seeing their premiums increase at the start of 2026.
