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Okay, for the past 12 years, our return had been around 10k. This is with 3 kids being claimed. This year it's only 4k, more than 50% less. Income didn't go up much, so any ideas why?
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Okay, for the past 12 years, our return had been around 10k. This is with 3 kids being claimed. This year it's only 4k, more than 50% less. Income didn't go up much, so any ideas why?
Did anyone turn 17 in 2019? If so you lost the child tax credit for the child.
We cannot see your screen, your return or your account. Have you entered ALL of your 2019 information? All your income, etc.? Many tax documents that you need do not arrive until late January or even February, so maybe you do not have it all there yet.
No one in this user forum can see your tax return or your screen. There were major tax law changes that began with the 2018 tax year that seem to continue to surprise some people. Personal exemptions of over $4000 per person were removed beginning with 2018 returns.
One thing that may be affecting your refund is that employers began withholding less tax when the new tax law passed. Your paychecks were more, but that means a smaller refund now.
There are a lot of variables that affect your refund or tax due including how much you earned, how much tax you had withheld, your filing status, the number of dependents you claim, your deductions and credits, etc. You may have lost Earned Income Credit or the Child Tax Credit— did a child turn 17? If you received the EIC last year, remember that changes in the amount you earn have a big effect on the amount of EIC you can get. (Sometimes earning more money means less EIC) Are you 65 or older ? If so, your standard deduction is higher. Everyone has a higher standard deduction now so it is harder to use itemized deductions.
And of course, always check your own data entries, looking for errors such as misplaced decimals or extra zeros.
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1901008-why-did-my-refund-go-down-compared-to-last-year-s
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Okay, for the past 12 years, our return had been around 10k. This is with 3 kids being claimed. This year it's only 4k, more than 50% less. Income didn't go up much, so any ideas why?
Look at your 2019 Form 1040 to see the child-related credits you received
Child Tax Credit line 13a
Credit for Other Dependents line 13a
Earned Income Credit line 18a
Additional Child Tax Credit line 18b
Child and Dependent Care Credit line 18d
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