Whether the child qualifies you for the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Credit in your case depends on how, or by what type of agency, the child was placed with you. From the IRS rules for a qualifying child:
To be a qualifying child for the EITC, your child must be your:
- Son, daughter, stepchild, adopted child or foster child
- Brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepsister or stepbrother
- Grandchild, niece or nephew
Adopted child definition
An adopted child is a child who is lawfully placed with you for legal adoption.
Foster child definition
For the EITC, you can only claim a foster child that is placed with you by:
- A State or local government agency
- An Indian tribal government
- A tax-exempt organization licensed by a state or an Indian tribal government
- A court order
You can claim the Child Tax Credit for each qualifying child who has a Social Security number that is valid for employment in the United States.
To be a qualifying child for the 2023 tax year, your dependent generally must:
- Be under age 17 at the end of the year
- Be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, or a descendant of one of these (for example, a grandchild, niece or nephew)
- Provide no more than half of their own financial support during the year
- Have lived with you for more than half the year
- Be properly claimed as your dependent on your tax return
- Not file a joint return with their spouse for the tax year or file it only to claim a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid
- Have been a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or U.S. resident alien
See this IRS article and this one for more information.
See also this TurboTax tips article.
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