It's possible you don't have any tax to offset, and that's why you don't qualify. The child and dependent care tax credit is nonrefundable, which means the credit cannot reduce your tax any further if it is already zero.
Make sure you meet all the qualifiers for the credit.
To qualify for the Child and Dependent Care Credit, ALL of the following must be true:
- Your dependent is listed (and is either under age 13 or is marked as disabled).
- You have earned income.
- Your spouse (if filing jointly) also has earned income, is a full-time student, or is disabled.
- Your filing status is not Married Filing Separately.
- You have provided the caregiver's social security or tax ID number.
- You must owe tax.
You can check to be sure that is what is happening by viewing your Tax Summary. Here is how to do that:
- Log in to your tax return
- Click on Tax Tools on the left side of the screen (you may need to click on Continue in the center first).
- Click on Tools.
- In the box that pops up in the center, click on View Tax Summary.
- If you see a 0 for Total Tax, then that is the reason you don't qualify for this particular credit.
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