There are two types of dependents - Qualifying Child for children under 18 (or under 24 if full-time students) that lived with you more then half the year and that credit for that up to $2,000 , and Qualifying Relative for relatives that you supported who's gross income was less than $4,200- the credit for that is $500.
Are they listed as dependent in boxes 1-4 on the first page of your 1040?
The $500 is not a refund, it is a credit against yiu tax liability. Did you have at least $1,000 tax liability on your 1040 line 12b?
What is on line 13b - that is the child tax credit and credit for other dependents?
**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
