Last year, I got $2k for a child credit; this year, Turbotax decided that I can only get $500 using Other Dependent Credit. My kids ages are 16, 14 and 12

[MindyB · Accepted solution]

It sounds like you should be eligible for the Child Tax Credit, but review the list of rules for a qualifying child, from Rules for Claiming Dependents on Taxes:

• "Are they related to you? The child can be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, adopted child or an offspring of any of them.
• Do they meet the age requirement? Your child must be under age 19 or, if a full-time student, under age 24. There's no age limit if your child is permanently and totally disabled.
• Do they live with you? Your child must live with you for more than half the year, but several exceptions apply.
• Do you financially support them? Your child may have a job, but they cannot provide more than half of their own support."

If they qualify, in order to ensure TurboTax is including your dependents properly, make sure you have answered all the questions in "My Info" regarding the dependents.

Navigate to My Info, Your household, select the first dependent. 

• Choose "My child", continue and be sure their name, date of birth and proper citizenship is complete. 
• Continue, and answer the question about living arrangements and parents. 
• Continue, and answer any less common situations, if applicable. 
• Lastly, enter the child's SSN and be sure that "Not valid for employment is printed..." is NOT checked. 

[DoninGA]

You answered a question incorrectly when entering them as dependents.  Go back to My Info and carefully review your answers for each child.

For a child under the age of 19, you should indicate that they lived in your home for the Whole Year.  That they did NOT provide over one-half of their own support.  That they were full time students.  That no one else in the household provided for their support.  And that you did Not check the box "not valid for employment" when entering their Social Security numbers.

If your answers are correct then delete them as dependents and re-enter.

[xmasbaby0]

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 2024 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 2024?  If not,  you will not receive an income tax refund based on having dependent children.

  The maximum amount of the child tax credit is now $2000 per child; the refundable “additional child tax credit” amount is $1700.   In order to get that credit, you have to have income from working.  

Take the amount you earned from working.   Subtract $2500.   Multiply the rest by 15%.  That is the additional child tax credit per child that you can get—- up to the maximum of $1700 per child.   If the amount you earned from working was low, you will not get the full $1700 per child.

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

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/taxation/child-tax-credit/L2lNhfGDl_US_e...

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/taxation/additional-child-tax-credit/L6x...

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

And for the Earned Income Credit—-

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-credits-deductions/qualifications-ea...

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

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p596.pdf

Look at your 2024 Form 1040 to see the child-related credits you received

PREVIEW 1040

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-return/preview-turbotax-online-retur...

Child Tax Credit line 19

Credit for Other Dependents line 19

Earned Income Credit line 27

Additional Child Tax Credit line 28

[eboraks1]

Thank you very much. The problem was that "Not valid for employment" was checked.