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Child tax credit

I was pregnant 2024 and gave birth on July 12 CPS took my son about 3 days later then he went into foster care can I still claim him to get the child tax credit even without income that year

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DawnC
Employee Tax Expert
Intuit Approved! This answer has been verified for accuracy by an Intuit expert employee

Child tax credit

Although you can claim your child as a dependent as long as the child meets the criteria below, you would not qualify for any tax credit with zero income.   Temporary absences count as time living with you.   

 

The refundable portion of the credit is calculated by taking 15% of your earned income above $2,500

 

Who can I claim as a dependent?   Qualifying Child:

 

  • They're related to you.
  • They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
  • They're a US 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).
    • There's no age limit for permanently and totally disabled children.
  • They lived with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).  A newborn is considered to have lived with you all year.
  • They didn't provide more than half of their own support for the year.
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6 Replies
DawnC
Employee Tax Expert
Intuit Approved! This answer has been verified for accuracy by an Intuit expert employee

Child tax credit

Although you can claim your child as a dependent as long as the child meets the criteria below, you would not qualify for any tax credit with zero income.   Temporary absences count as time living with you.   

 

The refundable portion of the credit is calculated by taking 15% of your earned income above $2,500

 

Who can I claim as a dependent?   Qualifying Child:

 

  • They're related to you.
  • They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
  • They're a US 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).
    • There's no age limit for permanently and totally disabled children.
  • They lived with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).  A newborn is considered to have lived with you all year.
  • They didn't provide more than half of their own support for the year.
**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post
**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"

Child tax credit

What about the additional child tax credit

RobertB4444
Employee Tax Expert

Child tax credit

The additional child tax credit is the portion of the child tax credit that is not used to reduce taxes.  With zero income you don't qualify for that either.

 

@kmate6818 

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Child tax credit

I read somewhere that there is some kind of child credit that I could claim and get with no income is that you also what constitutes as income and how much I need minimum

Child tax credit

@kmate6818 Sorry----there is no refundable credit you can get for claiming your child without having income from working.   There was one tax year in which that was possible, but the tax laws have changed.  If you did not have any income from working you are not eligible for the additional child tax credit.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**
RobertB4444
Employee Tax Expert

Child tax credit

There was a period where there was a child tax credit that you could claim if you had no income but that was pandemic tax rules and that has ended now.

 

Since your baby has not lived with you for most of the year - spent most of the year with their foster parents - then you are almost certainly ineligible to claim them even if you had earned income.  But you would need at least $2500 of pay in exchange for work that you do.

 

@kmate6818 

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