EIC is, roughly speaking, an incentive to work. Think of it as a partial rebate of the social security and medicare tax that was withheld from your paychecks, even if you did not have federal or state income tax withheld. It is highest for persons with dependent children, but a lower amount is available for adults over 25 who work low income jobs. It's paid on a sliding scale, so if your income increases next year, your EIC will go down and eventually disappear.
EIC refunds are delayed by law, that's normal. The IRS wants to match the wages you claimed with the copy of your W-2 that your employer is supposed to file with the IRS. (If they did not match, a person who did not work at all could claim fake wages to get EIC.). The expected payment date is March 3, but could be later if the IRS has trouble verifying your income.
https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit/when-to-expect-your-refu...
