Amend 2020 Return

[denisemares1212]

I need to amend my 2020 taxes. I realized that with the software I used, I accidentally clicked "sister" for my son on the dependents section. With the update, my refund amount will not change because he will still be my dependent (17 years old). However, my main concern is how this will affect the new 2021 child tax credit (the monthly payments beginning in July). I want to use TurboTax to amend the return and want to see how much it will cost, how long it will take to process, and again how/if at all it will affect the child tax credit. Thank you!

[JotikaT2]

Did you use TurboTax to prepare your original return?  If so, you would not be charged to file the amended return as you already paid for the forms and software for 2020 when you prepared your original tax return.

Amended return information

As far as processing time, that will depend upon the IRS and how quickly they process your return. Please see the link below for an estimate from the IRS as to how long it will take to update their system to see your amended return as well as processing times.

Where's my amended return information from the IRS

As for the new 2021 Child Tax Credit, the IRS will use the latest tax return on file to determine how much you are entitled to.  Please see the section titled Expanded Child Tax Credit on the link below for additional information.

How will the 3rd stimulus affect me

[denisemares1212]

Hello. I unfortunately did not use TurboTax. Can I use TurboTax to amend and efile? So, as long as the amendment is processed and fixed to show my dependent as my son and not my sister, I should not have any issues getting the child tax monthly credit for him starting in July? Thank you for your help. I cannot believe I did this haha

[JotikaT2]

Yes, you can still use TurboTax to amend your return.  But you will need to pay for the software and will need to enter your tax return as it was filed first.  Essentially, you will be entering all of your information again and will select to file by mail.  Then you will be able to start the amend process.  Please see the link below for more details.

Tips for filing an amended return

As long as you meet the requirements, yes, you should get the credit once they process your amended return.  It may not happen in July, but once they process your amended return, they should issue your payments as applicable.

Do I need to amend my return