topic I’m a single mom of two, I don’t understand why I’m only getting back 1800$ federal in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

I’m a single mom of two, I don’t understand why I’m only getting back 1800$ federal

markellampagonis — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 03:55:57 GMT

Re: I’m a single mom of two, I don’t understand why I’m only getting back 1800$ federal

xmasbaby0 — Sat, 10 Feb 2024 01:56:05 GMT

The child related credits are based on how much income you received from working. Have you entered all of your W-2's and/or all of your self-employment income? Or was your income from some other source? If so, income that did not come from working does not help you get the refundable credits like child tax credit or earned income credit.

The 2021 child-related credits were very generous. Lots of people are still being taken by surprise when they find out the credits for 2022 and 2023 are lower than they were for 2021.

The tax laws changed for child-related credits and are much less generous for 2022 and 2023.

Make sure you have entered your child as a dependent in My Info, and that you have entered the child's Social Security number. Careful— do not say that your child’s SSN is not valid for employment. If your child was born in 2023 make sure you said he lived with you the whole year. There is an oddly worded question that asks if the child paid over half their own support. Say NO to that question.

Have you entered income from working in 2023? If not, you will not receive an income tax refund based on having dependent children.

The rules for getting the child tax credit on a 2021 tax return and now on a 2023 return are very different. 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 2023 tax return. The “old” rules are back.

The maximum amount of the child tax credit is now $2000 per child; the refundable “additional child tax credit” amount is $1600. 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 $1600 per child. If the amount you earned was too low, you will not get the full $1600.

If your child is older than 16 at the end of 2023, you do not get the CTC. But you may still get the non-refundable $500 credit for other dependents instead.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1900923-what-is-the-child-tax-credit

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/taxation/additional-child-tax-credit/L6xFeMFEf_US_en_US?uid=lqnuygah

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/does-my-childdependent-qualify-for-the-child-tax-credit-or-the-credit-for-other-dependents

And for the Earned Income Credit—-the rules are back to the “old” rules—

Those under 25 and over 65 without children are not eligible as they were uniquely in 2021. And you cannot use your income from any earlier tax year to get the EIC for a 2022 return. There is no “lookback” for 2023. EIC for 2023 will be based on the income you earned by working in 2023.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1899157-what-are-the-qualifications-for-the-earned-income-credit-eic-or-eitc

https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit/use-the-eitc-assistant

Look at your 2023 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: I’m a single mom of two, I don’t understand why I’m only getting back 1800$ federal

DawnC — Sat, 10 Feb 2024 02:04:14 GMT

The Child Tax Credit is $2K per qualifying child. In 2023, the tax credit will be refundable only up to $1,600, depending on your income. You must have earned income of at least $2,500 to be eligible for the refund.

Your child must meet all of these requirements:

Be under age 17 at the end of the tax year
Is your child, stepchild, foster child, adopted child, sibling, step sibling, half sibling, or a descendant of them (for example, a grandchild, niece, or nephew)
Has their own Social Security number
- Children with ITINs don't qualify, but may instead be eligible for the $500 Credit for Other Dependents
Lived with you for more than half the year
Didn't support themselves (didn't pay more than half their own expenses)
Is a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or U.S. resident alien
- Residents of Canada or Mexico don't qualify

Make sure you have answered all the questions about your dependents in the My Info personal information section - these questions determine eligibility for the credits.

Lines 19 and 28 on Form 1040 will show how much credit you received. If it is not the amount you qualify for, the problem is probably in the answers provided to those questions.

Then check Line 27 to see if you have any Earned Income Credit. Have you went through the questions in TurboTax Deductions and Credits section? Why Don't I Qualify for EIC?

Re: I’m a single mom of two, I don’t understand why I’m only getting back 1800$ federal

Mike9241 — Sat, 10 Feb 2024 05:49:58 GMT

you could also try comparing your 2022 and 2023 returns line for line to see if anything stands out.