Based on the information in your question, you would answer Yes.
However, depending on how you answer the question on the next screen, it
may not matter.
The question regarding whether your earned income for 2017
is less than it was for 2016 is a part of tax-related disaster relief. After you
answer “yes” for that question, you
must answer another question about whether you qualify for disaster relief
based on other factors such as the location of your primary home.
The idea is that you may qualify for a larger amount of
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) if you use your 2016 income amount to calculate
it instead of your 2017 income. However,
that will not always be the case. EITC
amounts increase as income increases only up to a certain point, then as the
income continues to increase the EITC amount will decrease until it phases out
completely. So, it is possible that your
income amounts fall in the EITC tables where using the higher income from 2016
will actually cause the credit to be less.
The important thing to know is that this is entirely
optional. Even if you qualify for the disaster relief,
you are not required to use your 2016 income amounts to calculate the EITC. Go back through the section and answer “no” for the question.
Yes
No
