Can I claim $2000 Child credit if my child has valid ssn but ssn card says not valid for employment? She's not US citizen but meets substantial resident test and has ssn.

[Vanessa · Accepted solution]

No, the SSN must be valid for employment in order to claim the Child Tax Credit. 

[krutikshah]

The IRS dependent calculator validated her as depended for child credit. Also IRS states "The child must have an SSN to be a qualifying child eligible for the child tax credit (CTC) or the additional child tax credit (ACTC)." it doesn't states that ssn should specify valid for employment.

[Vanessa]

New social security number (SSN) requirement for a qualifying child. To
claim the ACTC, your qualifying child must
have the required SSN. The required SSN is
one that is valid for employment and that is
issued before the due date of your 2018 return (including extensions). If you have a
qualifying child who does not have the required SSN, you cannot use the child to
claim the ACTC on either your original or an
amended 2018 return.
If your qualifying child does not have the
required SSN but has another type of taxpayer identification number issued on or before
the due date of your 2018 return (including
extensions), you may be able to claim the
new credit for other dependents for that
child. See your tax return instructions for
more information about claiming the credit
for other dependents.
<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040s8.pdf">https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040s8.pdf</a>

[Vanessa]

Are you sure it was validated for the Other Dependent Credit instead of the child tax credit?

[krutikshah]

The think the IRS publication you shared answers my question correctly. Looks like I can't claim ACTC if ssn is not valid for employment.

[Vanessa]

Correct

[Bsch4477]

The child must be a citizen. 

[krutikshah]

As per IRS website "To be a qualifying child for the child tax credit, the child must be a citizen, national or resident of the United States and must not have attained age 17 by the end of the tax year". IT can be claimed by resident of US as well. It also states "The child must have an SSN to be a qualifying child eligible for the child tax credit (CTC) or the additional child tax credit (ACTC)."