Deductions & credits

@xmasbaby0 

Sorry I still not get it. Let me try another way. I went back and changed my answer to having received any Advanced Child Tax payments to "No". And with my AGI, it now updates and shows very correctly on line 28 that I should have a reduction of $4000 ($2000 x 2 children). My Federal Tax Due is then also reduced by exactly $2000 coming more in to line what it generally should be/as planned closer to zero owed!

If I go back again, and re-enter that "yes" I did receive Advance Payments of $2000 total, and now line 28 now shows $2000 and my Federal Tax Due is now +$2000 higher. This makes no sense.  So being penalized for receiving a payment. Government gives me $2000 cash + and then basically then reduces the amount of child reduction by $2000, which in turn means I have to pay back the $2000 they gave me, since now somehow I owe $2000 more in taxes. So how exactly did that help?