Why do I show Earned income credit on line 42a? I never reported any qualifying child.

[Texas Roger · Accepted solution]

You are not required to have a qualifying child to qualify for earned income credit. See these requirements:

For everyone, you and any qualifying children must  have a valid social security number, your filing status cannot be "married filing separately", you must be a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you cannot file Form 2555, investment income must be $3400 or less, and you cannot be a qualifying child of another person.

You must have earned income from working.

If you have a qualifying child, the child must meet the relationship, age, and residency but not the support tests and the child cannot be used by more than one person to claim EIC.

If you do not have a qualifying child, you must be at least age 25 but under age 65, cannot be the dependent of another person, and must have lived in the U.S. more than half the year.

Earned Income and AGI Limits

Earned income and adjusted gross income (AGI) must each be less than:

If filing...                                                                            Qualifying Children Claimed

                                                                           Zero           One           Two            Three or more    

Single, Head of Household or Widowed      $14,880      $39,296      $44,648       $47,955

Married Filing Jointly                                    $20,430      $44,846      $50,198       $53,505