Parents with few or no resources, and who typically don’t file taxes, may lose a significant amount of money from foregone tax credits. The children’s tax credit, in particular, can earn you significant payments, even though many of them haven’t yet applied.
In fact, about 4 million families are owed this money by the IRS, but they have not yet claimed these tax credits. You may also be eligible to claim the Earned Income Tax Credit, EITC, or a third stimulus payment.
You have until November 15 to claim these missed tax credits, and here’s how.
What is a child tax credit?
In 2021, the CTC got a big push to provide more help to families in need. The credit provides $3,600 per child under 6 and $3,000 per child under 18, up from the previous $2,000. The IRS has approximately $3.7 billion of this money, so be sure to claim your share before the November 15 deadline.
To receive this payment though, you will have to file a tax return. If you do not file taxes in 2021, you will need to go to GETCTC.org to do so. The Site will allow you to file a tax return for the purpose of claiming this benefit, along with any other tax credits for which you are eligible.
Code for America, a nonprofit organization that works with the White House, created the site, which provides a streamlined filing tool for users looking to claim missed payments. The tool can be used on mobile devices and also offers a Spanish language version.
according to White House (Opens in a new tab)This is what you will need to complete the form. (Income is not required to receive CTC).
- Social Security Social Security Numbers for your children and Social Security Numbers (or ITINs) for you and your spouse
- Trusted mailing address
- Email address or phone number
- Your bank account information (if you want to receive your payment by direct deposit
Do you qualify for CTC?
Here are the eligibility requirements for a child tax credit, according to getyourrefund.org.
- Earn less than $75,000 as a single parent, or $150,000 as a married couple. If you earn less than $240,000 as a single parent, or $440,000 as a married couple, you can still receive some health care costs.
- You must have lived in the United States for more than six months in 2021. (If not, you may qualify for a smaller CTC.)
- The child you are claiming must be your child, grandchild, brother, niece/nephew or niece/nephew. Adoptive relatives, first-degree relatives, and non-relatives are also eligible.
- Your child needs a Social Security Number (SSN). You, the parent, need a Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).
- Your child must be under 18 at the end of 2021. (Born on or after January 1, 2004).
- Your child must live with you for at least six months in 2021.
- Your child must not be financially independent, which means he cannot pay more than half of his living expenses.
- You have to be the best person to claim the baby. In general, parents can claim children before non-parents; Parents who spend more time with the child can claim ahead of parents who spend less time; Non-parents who spend more time with the child can claim against non-parents who spend less time.
Received tax revenue
You can also claim money from the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). EITC is geared towards low to middle income families. Credits range from From $1502 to $6728Based on registration status, number of children and earned income. Again, many of those eligible for credit haven’t received the funds yet, so the IRS has billions of dollars waiting to be allocated. In fact, Up to one-fifth of eligible recipients They haven’t received their payment yet.
You can claim this credit by going to the same website, GETCTC.org, but more information will be required. Although no proof of income is required to earn the child tax credit, you will need to file a form of documented income with a W-2 to claim the EITC.
stimulus payments
Furthermore, you will also have until November 15th to claim your third stimulus payment. The payments were $1,400 per person and were first issued in March/April 2021. If you haven’t claimed this payment yet, you could lose a generous amount of cash. These payments are called refund deductions and can be claimed GetYourRefund (Opens in a new tab). Here you will also find additional information and eligibility requirements.