Child-Related Tax Benefits

This table displays the basic eligibility rules for tax credits and benefits available to you if you have a dependent qualifying child. We provide the rules for the following child related tax benefits:

  • Dependents
  • Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
  • Child Tax Credit (CTC)
  • Credit for Other Dependents (ODC)
  • Child and Dependent Care Credit (CDCC)
  • American Opportunity Credit (AOTC)
  • Head of household (HOH) filing status

Note: We also discuss whether an individual who is not the taxpayer’s dependent qualifying child can be claimed for each tax benefit. For example:

  • EITC, CDCC and HOH: In some cases, these tax benefits can be claimed for an individual not claimed as a dependent on the taxpayer’s return.
  • ODC: An individual claimed for the credit can be the taxpayer’s dependent qualifying child or dependent qualifying relative.

Caution:  This table is for quick comparison only. Each listed tax benefit has other requirements. This at-a-glance guide also tells you where to find more information.

Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
SSN Requirement

A child claimed as a dependent must have a:

  • Social Security number (SSN),
  • Individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN), or
  •  Adoption taxpayer identification number (ATIN).
Relationship

The child must be the taxpayer’s:
Son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, adopted child 3, foster child 4, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or descendant of any of them.

Note: A person who isn't related to the taxpayer in one of these ways may still be eligible to be claimed under the rules for a dependent qualifying relative and for the ODC and HOH. The taxpayer’s spouse not capable of self-care or other person or dependent not capable of self-care may be eligible to be claimed as a qualifying person for the CDCC. 

See Publication 501 for more information about dependents and HOH. 

See the Instructions for Schedule 8812 for more information about ODC. 

See Publication 503 and the Instructions for Form 2441 for more information about CDCC. 

Age Child must be:
  • Younger than the taxpayer (or their spouse if filing a joint return) and under age 19 at end of the tax year
  • Younger than the taxpayer (or their spouse if filing a joint return), under age 24 at the end of the tax year and a full-time student1
  • Any age if permanently and totally disabled2

Note: A person who doesn't meet this rule may still be eligible to be claimed as a dependent under the rules for a dependent qualifying relative.

See Publication 501 for more information.

Support

The child must not provide over half of their own support for the tax year.

Under the rules for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, for the noncustodial parent to claim the child as a dependent, the child must have received over half of their support from one or both parents.

A person who doesn't meet this rule may still be eligible to be claimed as dependent under the rules for a dependent qualifying relative.

Foster child: Payments the taxpayer receives for the support of a foster child from a child placement agency or from a state or county are considered support provided by the applicable agency, state or county.

See Publication 501 for more information.

Citizenship

The child must be:

  • A U.S. citizen, national or resident, or
  • A resident of Canada or Mexico
Special Rule for Parents Who are Divorced, Separated, or living apart The dependent can be claimed by the noncustodial parent under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart.
 Publications
Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Dependent

The child claimed does not necessarily have to be claimed as a dependent.

An unmarried child may be claimed for EITC if the child:

  • Is claimed as a dependent qualifying child, or 
  • Can’t be claimed as a dependent qualifying child because:
    • The child provided half of their own support, or
    • Under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, the taxpayer who is the custodial parent let the child’s other parent claim the child as a dependent qualifying child.

A married child may be claimed for the EITC if the child is:

  • Claimed as a dependent qualifying child, or  
  • Under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated or living apart, can’t be claimed as a dependent qualifying child because the taxpayer who is the custodial parent let the child’s other parent claim the child as a dependent qualifying child.

See Publication 596, Earned Income Credit, and the Instructions for Form 1040 and Form 1040-SR, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, for more information.

SSN Requirement

The child must have an SSN that is valid for employment and was issued before the due date of the return (including extensions).

Note: An SSN issued to a U.S. citizen is valid for employment.

Relationship

The child must be the taxpayer’s:
Son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, adopted child,3 foster child,4 brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or descendant of any of them.

Age

The child must be:

  • Under age 19 at the end of the year and younger than you (or your spouse, if you file a joint return), or
  • Under age 24 at the end of the year and a full-time student1 for at least 5 months of the year and younger than you (or your spouse, if you file a joint return).

 

 Residency

In general, a child must have lived with the taxpayer in the United States more than half the tax year (see exceptions below). The United States includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. military bases. It does not include United States possessions such as Guam, the Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico.

However, under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, a parent may be eligible to claim a child who did not live with them more than half the tax year for the CTC/ACTC if the parent with whom the child lived more than half the tax year let them claim the child as a dependent.

Exceptions:

  • Temporary absence
  • Birth or death of child
  • Kidnapped child

For more residency information, see:

Joint Return

If your child can file a joint return with another person (for example, their husband or wife), you may not be able to claim them.

To be a qualifying child for the EITC, your child must not have filed a joint return with another person (for example, their husband or wife) to claim any credits such as the EITC. Your child can file a joint tax return only to get a tax refund on tax withheld from their paycheck.

For more information see:

Citizenship

The child must be a U.S. citizen, national or resident.

Special rule for parents divorced, separated, or living apart

Only one person may claim a qualifying child.

Even if two or more persons have the same qualifying child, only one person can claim the child as a qualifying child for all this benefit. Special rules apply for parents who are divorced, separated, or who are living apart.

When two or more persons can claim the same qualifying child, the following tiebreaker rules apply.

Required Schedules or Forms

If claiming EITC with a qualifying child:

If EITC previously disallowed:

Paid Preparers only: Form 8867, Paid Preparer’s Due Diligence Checklist

Publications
Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Dependent

The child must be claimed as a dependent qualifying child.

Note: For a child who is the dependent qualifying child of more than one taxpayer, tie-breaker rules are used to determine which taxpayer can claim the child for the CTC. 

See the Instructions for Schedule 8812, Credits for Qualifying Children and Other Dependents, and Publication 501, Dependents, Standard Deduction and Filing Information, for more information.

SSN Requirement

The child must have an SSN that is valid for employment and was issued before the due date of the return (including extensions).

Note: An SSN issued to a U.S. citizen is valid for employment.

Relationship

The child must be the taxpayer’s:
Son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, adopted child 3, foster child 4, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or descendant of any of them.

Note: A person who isn't related to the taxpayer in one of these ways may still be eligible to be claimed under the rules for a dependent qualifying relative and for the ODC .   

See the Instructions for Schedule 8812 for more information about ODC. 

 

Age

Child must be younger than the taxpayer (or their spouse if filing a joint return) and under the applicable age at the end of the tax year.

  • For tax year 2021 only, the applicable age is under age 18 at the end of the year.
  • For all other years, the applicable age is under age 17 at the end of the year.
Residency

In general, a child must have lived with the taxpayer more than half the tax year (see exceptions below). 

However, under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, a parent may be eligible to claim a child who did not live with them more than half the tax year for the CTC/ACTC if the parent with whom the child lived more than half the tax year let them claim the child as a dependent.

Exceptions:

  • Temporary absence
  • Birth or death of child
  • Kidnapped child

For more residency information, see:

Support

The child must not provide over half of their own support for the tax year.

Note: Under the rules for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, for the noncustodial parent to claim the child for the child tax credit, the child must have received over half of their support from one or both parents.

Citizenship

The child must be a U.S. citizen, national or resident.

Special Rule for Parents Who are Divorced, Separated, or living apart A noncustodial parent can claim a child under the special rule for parents divorced, separated, or living apart.
Required Schedules or Forms

If CTC or ODC previously disallowed:

Paid Preparers only: Form 8867, Paid Preparer’s Due Diligence Checklist

Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Dependent

The person must be claimed as a dependent on the tax return – either as a qualifying child that does not qualify for Child Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit, or a qualifying relative.

SSN Requirement

The dependent must have an SSN, ITIN or ATIN issued on or before the due date of the return (including extensions). The SSN doesn’t have to be valid for employment.

Relationship

The dependent must be an individual who isn’t related to the taxpayer, or a dependent who is a child, stepchild, foster child or a descendent or any of them or, another qualifying relative such as father/mother (including step), grandparent, aunt/uncle, sister/brother (including half or step), niece/nephew and son/daughter/mother/father-in-law.  

Age

Dependent of any age, including those who are age 18 or older.   

 Residency

In general, the individual must be:

  • Dependent parents or other qualifying relatives supported by the taxpayer.
  • Dependents living with the taxpayer all year who aren’t related to the taxpayer.
Support

The dependent must not provide over half of their own support for the tax year.

For a dependent claimed as a qualifying relative, the taxpayer must have provided more than half their support during the tax year.

Citizenship

The dependent must be a U.S. citizen, national or resident.

Joint Return

The dependent must not file a joint return or can only file a joint return to claim a refund of income tax withheld or estimated tax paid, and neither the individual nor their spouse has a filing requirement.

Required Schedules or Forms

 

Paid Preparers only: Form 8867, Paid Preparer’s Due Diligence Checklist

Publication
Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Qualifying Person
  • A dependent who is under age 13 when the care is provided, or
  • A taxpayer’s spouse, who is mentally or physically unable to care for themselves and lived with the taxpayer for more than half the year, or
  • A person who isn’t mentally or physically able to care for themself, lives with the taxpayer for more than half the year, and either:
    • Is their dependent, or
    • Would have been their dependent except that they receive more than a certain gross income amount, or they file a joint return, or they (or their spouse in the case of a joint return) can be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return.
SSN Requirement

The credit can be claimed for a child with an SSN, ITIN or ATIN.  

Age

 The child must be younger than the taxpayer (or their spouse if filing a joint return), and either:

  • Under age 13 for the days the care was provided, or
  • Physically or mentally incapable of self-care

Note: The taxpayer’s spouse not capable of self-care or other person or dependent not capable of self-care who doesn't meet this age rule may still be eligible as a qualifying person for the CDCC.

See Publication 503 and the Instructions for Form 2441 for more information.

 Residency

In general, the child must have lived with the taxpayer for more than half of the tax year.

For divorced or separated parents or parents living apart, a child must have been in the custody of one or both parents for more than half the tax year and the taxpayer must be the custodial parent.

Exceptions:

  • Temporary absence
  • Birth or death of child

Note: The taxpayer’s spouse or other person or dependent not capable of self-care who is claimed for the CDCC must have lived with the taxpayer more than half the tax year.

See Publication 503 and the Instructions for Form 2441 for more information.

Support

In general, a child must not provide over half of their own support for the tax year.

For parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart:

  • The custodial parent can claim the CDCC even if they let the non-custodial parent claim the child as a dependent. 
  • The noncustodial parent cannot claim the child for the CDCC even if the custodial parent lets them claim the child as a dependent.

Note: A person who doesn't meet this support test, such as the taxpayer’s spouse not capable of self-care or other person or dependent not capable of self-care, may still be eligible as a qualifying person for the CDCC. 

See Publication 503 and the Instructions for Form 2441 for more information.

Citizenship

The child must be:

  • A U.S. citizen, national or resident, or
  • A resident of Canada or Mexico
Special rule for parents divorced, separated, or living apart

A noncustodial parent cannot claim this credit under the special rule for parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart.

Required Schedules or Forms
Publications
Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Student

May be the taxpayer, taxpayer’s spouse or dependent listed on their return. 

SSN Requirement

Must have a valid SSN, ITIN or ATIN issued  or applied for on or before the due date of the return. 

Eligible Student

Must:

  • Be pursuing a degree or other recognized educational credential
  • Be enrolled at least half time for at least one academic period beginning in the tax year
  • Not have finished the first four years of higher education at the beginning of the tax year
  • Not have claimed the AOTC or the former Hope credit for more than four tax years 
  • Not have a felony drug conviction at the end of the tax year

Note: The student cannot have also claimed the Lifetime Learning Credit on the same tax return.

Academic Period

Can be semesters, trimesters, quarters, or any other period of study such as a summer school session.  The schools determine the academic periods. For schools that use clock or credit hours and do not have academic terms, the payment period may be treated as an academic period.

Form 1098-T

The student must have received a Form 1098-T Tuition Statement from their school by January 31.

Qualified Education Expenses

Must be paid by cash, check, credit, or debit card, or paid with money from a loan and paid by:

  • Taxpayer or their spouse if a joint return is filed
  • A student claimed as a dependent
  • A third-party including relatives or friends.

Must be amounts paid for tuition, fees and other related expense for an eligible student required for enrollment or attendance at an eligible educational institute. These can include student activity fees required to enroll or attend the school.

Expenses cannot have been paid with tax-free grants, scholarships and fellowships and other tax-free education help.

Expenses that Do Not Qualify
  • Room and board
  • Insurance
  • Medical expenses (including student health fees)
  • Transportation
  • Similar personal, living or family expenses
Required Schedules or Forms

If AOTC was previously disallowed use

Publications Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education
Rules Basic Eligibility Requirements
Marriage Test

The taxpayer must be one of the following

  • Single
  • Divorced or legally separated 
  • Married, but the taxpayer’s spouse did not live with them the last six months of the tax year
  • Married to an individual that is not a citizen or resident of the United states.
Qualifying Person Test

The dependent must be the taxpayer’s:

  • Child (including an adopted child or pending adoption)
  • Brother or sister, stepbrother, or stepsister, or any of the descendants (for example, grandchild, niece, or nephew)
  • Eligible foster child (a child placed in the taxpayer’s home by an authorized placement agency or by a court order)

And

  • Can be claimed as a dependent
  • Lived with the taxpayer more than half the year

Residency Exceptions:

  • Temporary absence
  • Birth or death of child
  • Kidnapped child

A dependent parent who doesn't live with the taxpayer may qualify them to claim HOH filing status under the rules for a dependent qualifying relative. See Publication 501 for more information.

Cost of Keeping Up a Home

The taxpayer must:

  • Pass both the marriage test and the qualifying person test.
  • Pay for more than half the cost of keeping up a home.

If claiming Head of Household filing status for dependent parents, the taxpayer must pay more than half the cost of keeping up a home that was the parents main home for the entire year.

Required Schedules or Forms

Paid Preparers only: Form 8867, Paid Preparer’s Due Diligence Checklist

Publications

1Student

To qualify as a student during some part of any 5 calendar months of the year (the 5 calendar months don't have to be consecutive); a child must be:

  • A full-time student at a school that has a regular teaching staff, course of study, and a regularly enrolled student body at the school, or
  • A student taking a full-time, on-farm training course given by a school described above, or by a state, county or local government agency.

Full-time student. A full-time student is a student who is enrolled for the number of hours or courses the school considers to be full-time attendance.

School defined. A school can be an elementary school, junior or senior high school, college, university, or technical, trade, or mechanical school. But an on-the-job training course, correspondence school, or school offering courses only through the Internet doesn't count as a school.

Vocational high school students. Students who work on “co-op” jobs in private industry as a part of a school's regular course of classroom and practical training are considered full-time students.

2Permanently and totally disabled

A child is permanently and totally disabled if both of the following apply:

  • The child cannot engage in any substantial gainful activity because of a physical or mental condition and
  • A doctor or government agency determines the condition has lasted or can be expected to last continuously for at least 12 months or can be expected to result in death.

3Adopted child

An adopted child is always treated as the taxpayer’s own child. This term includes a child who is lawfully placed with the taxpayer for legal adoption.

4Foster child

A foster child is a child placed with the taxpayer by an authorized placement agency or by judgment, decree, or other order of any court of competent jurisdiction. An authorized placement agency includes a state, the District of Columbia, a possession of the United States, a foreign country, an Indian tribal government, or an agency or organization that is authorized by a state, the District of Columbia, a possession of the United States, a foreign country, an Indian Tribal Government, or a political subdivision of any of these to place children in foster care.