topic I'm married filing jointly with 2 kids under 4. One counts for the CTC the other doesn't. We can't figure out why he doesn't count since he meets all the requirements. in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

I'm married filing jointly with 2 kids under 4. One counts for the CTC the other doesn't. We can't figure out why he doesn't count since he meets all the requirements.

sjharmon — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 09:10:49 GMT

Can anyone explain how to fix this? Is says he is a dependent but not a child. He is 1.5 years old.

Re: I'm married filing jointly with 2 kids under 4. One counts for the CTC the other doesn't. We can't figure out why he doesn't count since he meets all the requirements.

xmasbaby0 — Fri, 04 Mar 2022 01:30:38 GMT

Then you are answering something incorrectly. Check the date of birth you entered.

Make sure you have entered your child as a dependent in My Info, and that you have entered the child's Social Security number. If your child was born in 2021make 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.

If you accidentally say his Social Security number is not valid for employment that will mess you up.

If checking all of those things does not fix it, delete him and then enter his information again--going very slowly through every screen in My Info.

Re: I'm married filing jointly with 2 kids under 4. One counts for the CTC the other doesn't. We ...

DawnC — Fri, 04 Mar 2022 01:41:36 GMT

There is a typo or a incorrectly answered question in the dependent section, probably. Click on Edit next to the child that is not showing Child Tax Credit eligible and carefully go back over the questions. Pay close attention to the following items:

Check that the birthday is correct
Make sure the child is marked as your child, not ''someone else I support'' - this is the relationship question
Make sure citizenship status is US
On the How many months did XXX live with you? screen, make sure both boxes are The Whole Year
Make sure you marked NO - the child did not pay for half their support
And NO to Did a Relative help
And make sure there is not a checkmark next to the box that says the child's ssn is NOT valid for employment

Any of those could cause your child not to show up as a qualifying child. The answers I gave above are for dependents that are.....

Qualifying child(ren)

They're related to you.
They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
They're a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.
They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse.
They're under the age of 19 (or 24 for full-time students).
- No age limit for permanently and totally disabled children.
They lived with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).
They didn't provide more than half of their own support for the year.