topic Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How? in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How?

benettadam — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 10:57:15 GMT

Re: Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 05:15:46 GMT

For starters---the child tax credit is different for 2022. And there is no recovery rebate credit for 2022.

We cannot see your screen, your return or your account. Have you entered ALL of your 2022 information? All your income, etc.? Many tax documents that you need do not arrive until late January or even February, so maybe you do not have it all there yet.

There are a lot of variables that affect your refund or tax due including how much you earned, how much tax you had withheld, your filing status, the number of dependents you claim, your deductions and credits, etc. You may have lost Earned Income Credit or the Child Tax Credit— did a child turn 17? If you received the EIC last year, remember that changes in the amount you earn have a big effect on the amount of EIC you can get. (Sometimes earning more money means less EIC) Are you 65 or older ? If so, your standard deduction is higher. Everyone has a higher standard deduction now so it is harder to use itemized deductions.

And…..the child tax credit is very different for 2022 For 2021 you could get $3600 for a child under 6 or $3000 for a child between 6 and 17 even if you had no income/did not work. That is NOT the way it will work for your 2022 tax return. The “old” rules are back. The maximum amount of the child tax credit is now $2000; the refundable “additional child tax credit” amount is $1500. In order to get that credit, you have to have income from working. The credit is calculated based on the amount you earned above $2500 multiplied by 15%, up to the full $1500. If your child is older than 16 at the end of 2022, you do not get the CTC. But you may still get the non-refundable $500 credit for other dependents instead.

And of course, always check your own data entries, looking for errors such as misplaced decimals or extra zeros.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1901008-why-did-my-refund-go-down-compared-to-last-year-s

Print out 2021 and 2022 and compare them side by side to see what is different.

Re: Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 05:16:34 GMT

Look at your 2022 Form 1040 to see the child-related credits you received

PREVIEW 1040

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1901539-how-do-i-preview-my-turbotax-online-return-before-filing

Child Tax Credit line 19

Credit for Other Dependents line 19

Earned Income Credit line 27

Additional Child Tax Credit line 28

Re: Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How?

Mike9241 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 05:29:15 GMT

we can't see your return, so you would really need to compare returns line for line. income going up means higher taxes. maybe less withheld. one or both would contribute to a smaller refund.

Re: Last year I made $36,000 got back about $8000 state and federal. This year I made $44,000 got back only $3500 state and federal. Both times with 2 child dependents. How?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 05:32:53 GMT

And....since you are posting from online "Live" software if you are really using the Live software you should be talking to your Live expert for help.

You are posting from TurboTax Live. You can arrange for the Live help you are paying the extra fee for with your questions from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Pacific time.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/4124827-how-do-i-connect-with-a-tax-expert-in-turbotax-live