topic Only made under $5k for the year but also had a child do I still file? Will I get the child tax credit? in Deductions & credits

Only made under $5k for the year but also had a child do I still file? Will I get the child tax credit?

sabrinamarchena — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 06:04:07 GMT

Re: Only made under $5k for the year but also had a child do I still file? Will I get the child t...

JamesG1 — Sun, 19 Jan 2025 23:15:00 GMT

At that income level, you may not be required to file but you could be eligible for the Child Tax Credit. Assuming that you meet all the requirements of the Child Tax Credit, you must have earned income of at least $2,500 to be eligible.

To qualify, your child must meet all 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 any 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
Did not support themselves (did not 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 do not qualify

If your child is older than 16 at the end of 2024, you do not qualify for the Child Tax Credit. But you may qualify for the non-refundable $500 credit for other dependents instead.

On your 2024 tax return, you can claim the Child Tax Credit for each qualifying dependent child on your return. You can get up to $2,000 for each child under age 17 if your modified adjusted gross income (AGI) is less than:

$400,000 if you're Married Filing Jointly or a Qualifying Surviving Spouse, or
$200,000 for all other filing statuses

What is the Child Tax Credit?

Re: Only made under $5k for the year but also had a child do I still file? Will I get the child t...

xmasbaby0 — Mon, 20 Jan 2025 00:32:33 GMT

Do not expect to get the full amount of the refundable additional child tax credit, since your income from working was low. The calculations are done as follows:

The credit is calculated based on the amount you earned above $2500 multiplied by 15%, up to the full $1700 per child. If the amount you earned was too low, you will not get the full $1700. (If you earned less than $5000, your additional child tax credit will be less than $400 for one child)

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—

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-credits-deductions/qualifications-earned-income-credit-eic-eitc/L7w4BFP32_US_en_US?uid=m62rmz09

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

Look at your 2024 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

AND….If you have children but had little or no income, it raises the question of how you and the children were supported. There may be another tax-paying adult who can claim you and/or the children as dependents.