Amending Tax Return to File for Adoption Tax Credit after the Adoption

[txbonbon]

Hello, 

 We adopted our Daughter from the Foster Care System in 2011 at 18 months old. At the time she did not qualify for any adoption assistance through the state. As she got older we realized that she was having issues and in 2017 we was finally diagnosed, she has Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD Combined Presentation and Oppositional Defiant Disorder.  Just this month CPS changed her status and find that she is eligible for Adoption Assistance and that she has always had the disorders they just were not diagnosed yet. My question is: Can we go back and amend or claim the Adoption Tax Credit for a disabled child now? We adopted her in 2011. We did not file for the Tax Credit then but we did file that she was adopted and we did claim her the years before as a foster child, dependent. I tried call the IRS but they are really hard to get in touch with when it is not Tax Season. Any help would be great. Thank you.  

[Stinkerbellkity]

Generally, to receive an amended return refund, you need to file the amended return within 3 years of the due date of the return or two years of paying the tax.  You're way past that time, and your situation is not listed among any of the exceptions to the rule.  For much of it's life, the Adoption credit was nonrefundable, meaning it was limited by the amount of your tax liability and the balance could be carried forward.  For 2011, though, the credit was refundable, meaning you would have received the credit in cash in that year regardless of your tax liability, so there would not even be a carryforward into more recent years for which you might receive a refund.  Sorry.

[txbonbon]

Thank you for your reply Stinkerbellkitty, I guessed as much already but thought I would put it out there.

[Stinkerbellkity]

It was a good question and I did a fair amount of research to see if there was some path yuu could take that would help you, but, in the end, I couldn't.  If I were you, I would go back to foster care or any agency involved in the adoption and see if they could do something for you now in the way of assistance.