Form 8812; Child Tax Credit

• This Credit will automatically populate in a Federal Tax Return that qualifies.

• All questions must be answered within the Dependent & Household Member Listing Page for system to compute credit. For more information:

  • See the Child Tax Credit/Additional Child Tax Credit page (Under"Reference Guides) for specific page instructiions."

  • IRS Publication 972; Child Tax Credit.

  • IRS Form 8812 Instructions.

Disclaimer: This information is not Tax Advise. The information included is limited to a general overview of credit and what basic qualifications are required. This information is current for the 2016 Tax Year. We do our best to keep this information current. But we are human and the IRS can make changes at anytime.

• For more information:

  • IRS Publication 972; Child Tax Credit.

  • IRS Form 8812 Instructions.

• This Credit will automatically populate in a Federal Tax Return that qualifies.

• All questions must be answered within the Dependent & Household Member Listing Page for system to compute credit.

• Specific page instructions for the Child Tax Credit/Additional Child Tax Credit can be found in "Reference Guides".

What is the Child Tax Credit (CTC)?

The Child Tax Credit is a credit for taxpayers with at least one qualifying child.

How Much Is The Child Tax Credit?

The maximum Credit is $1,000.

Do I Qualify?

This credit requires all of the following:

• Age Test: The child must be under 17 (16 or younger).

• Relationship Test: Your Son, Daughter, Stepchild, Foster Child, Brother, Sister, Stepbrother, Stepsister or a descendant of any of these individuals, which includes your Grandchild, Niece or Nephew. An adopted child is always treated as your own child. (An adopted child includes a child lawfully placed with you for legal adoption).

• Support Test: The child must not have provided more than half of their own support.

• Dependent Test: You must claim the child as a dependent on your federal tax return.

• Citizenship Test: The child must be a U.S. Citizen, U.S. National, or U.S. Resident Alien. ("U.S. National" for tax purposes refers to individuals that were born in American Samoa or in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.)

• Residence Test: The child must have lived with you for more than half of the tax year for which you claim the credit.

  • A child who was born (or died) during the tax year is considered to have lived with you for the entire year.

  • Temporary absences such as school, vacation, business, medical care, military services or detention in a juvenile facility, are counted as time the child lived with you.

  • Special Rules apply for child(ren) of divorced or separated parents. (see IRS Publication 972, IRS Form 8812 Instructions for more information).

Is There A Limit To How Much Income I Make To Claim The Credit?

Yes, The credit is limited if your modified adjusted gross income is above a certain amount.

• The amount at which this phase-out begins varies depending on your filing status.

  • Married Filing Jointly; the phase-out begins at $110,000.

  • Married Filing Separate: the phase out begins at $55,000.

  • All other taxpayers, the phase-out begins at $75,000.

Credit is also limited to:

• By the amount of the Income Tax you owe.

• Any Alternative Minimum Tax you owe.