Did you know that Monday, June 21 was designated Child Tax Credit Awareness Day by the White House? Not if you rely on our local news media here in Arizona.
Apparently they don’t care if you get the money to which you are entitled if you are raising children. So here is a public service announcement to help you out.
The Child Tax Credit payments begin July 15, so if you need to sign up, do so now. If you have paid taxes in 2019 and 2020 and claimed your children as dependents, the payments are automatic.
And remember: the American Rescue Plan was passed with only Democratic votes. Not one miserly Republican voted for it. Keep this in mind as shameless Republicans are certain to try to claim credit for a child tax credit that none of them voted for. Thank a Democrat with your vote.
What's happening:
The American Rescue Plan increased the #ChildTaxCredit payments from $2,000 per child to $3,000 per child for children over the age of six and from $2,000 to $3,600 for children under the age of six — and made the payments automatic and monthly for most. 2/7
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
Who qualifies for the #ChildTaxCredit?
Nearly all families with kids will qualify. Couples making less than $150,000 and single parents making less than $112,500 qualify for the full benefit. Those with higher incomes may qualify for a smaller benefit or no benefit. 3/7
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
Do I have to do anything to get the payments?
Nearly all working families with kids will get the #ChildTaxCredit automatically. If you filed your 2019 or 2020 tax return, or if you signed up for stimulus payments using the IRS's Non-filer tool last year, you're all set. 4/7
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
What if I didn't file taxes?
For those who didn't earn enough income to be required to pay taxes, you can use the Non-Filers tool to sign up for the #ChildTaxCredit.
If you're late filing taxes, you can still file a return to get monthly Child Tax Credit payments in 2021. 5/7
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
Can we get these benefits after 2021?
The new #ChildTaxCredit enacted in the American Rescue Plan is only for 2021 — but President Biden's American Families Plan proposes extending the credit for years and years to come. 6/7
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
Learn more about the #ChildTaxCredit and spread the word at https://t.co/P8gN7UpNzf
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 21, 2021
Statement by President Joe Biden on Child Tax Credit Awareness Day:
I have repeatedly said that America’s middle class deserves a tax cut, and we’re providing a significant tax cut to America’s working families with children through the largest-ever child tax credit.
Not only did the American Rescue Plan increase the child tax credit to $3000 for families whose children are between 6-17 years old and $3600 for families with children under 6 years old, it allows half of that tax cut to be paid to families in advance through a monthly check or direct deposit. This year, a family with two young children would receive a tax cut of $7200, with a monthly payment of $600 starting in July. Almost all families who have filed taxes in the last two years will receive this tax cut automatically.
This tax cut will give our nation’s hardworking families with children a little more breathing room when it comes to putting food on the table, paying the bills, and making ends meet. Nearly every working family with children is going to feel this tax cut make a difference in their lives, and we need to spread the word so that all eligible families get the full credit.
Just as Americans came together in support of the American Rescue Plan, we’re asking Americans to come together to build support and awareness for this vital tax relief for families, to help us extend it for years to come, and to ensure we get all children in our nation’s low-income families signed up this year.
If we’re able to get every family signed up, it will mean significant tax relief for America’s working families, and will help bring us even closer to cutting child poverty in half. That is why we have designated today, June 21, as Child Tax Credit Awareness Day. Across the nation, organizations that advocate for children, faith-based organizations and elected officials are holding events, training volunteers, announcing strategies to sign up the lowest income families, and using social media to explain how the Child Tax Credit will cut child poverty and why we must extend it through the American Families Plan.
To help or sign up, please go to ChildTaxCredit.Gov. It provides simple, useful information, in both English and Spanish, as well as a link to help families sign up.
For parents working to make ends meet and raise their children with greater security, dignity, and opportunity, help is here. On this Child Tax Credit Awareness day, let us all work together to make sure that the help that is here reaches those who most need it, this year and for years to come.
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UPDATE: Forbes reports, IRS Launches Child Tax Credit Eligibility And Update Tools:
Some 36 million families are eligible for advance payments of enhanced child tax credits for 2021, and the Internal Revenue Service has launched two new online tools to help taxpayers navigate this tax law change. There’s a Child Tax Credit Eligibility Assistant tool, and a Child Tax Credit Update Portal. These two tools follow the Child Tax Credit Non-Filer Sign-Up Tool launched earlier this month.
[T]he first new tool, the Child Tax Credit Eligibility Assistant, helps taxpayers figure out whether they qualify for the advance payments. If you determine you’re eligible, you would either file a 2020 income tax return or sign up using the Non-filer Sign-Up Tool.
The second new tool, the Child Tax Credit Update Portal, allows taxpayers to verify their eligibility for the payments and to unenroll or opt out of receiving the monthly payments. “The Update Portal is a key piece among the three new tools now available on IRS.gov to help families understand, register for and monitor these payments,” said IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig.
[M]ore updates are coming soon. You’ll actually be able to check the status of your payments. In late June, you’ll be able to update bank account information for payments starting in August. In early August, you’ll be able to update your mailing address. Future updates will let you update family status and changes in income.
Did you get a letter from the IRS saying you may be eligible? Watch out for a second round letter that will be a formal notification of the amount you’ll receive.
Most families don’t have to do anything if they want the advance payments. If you filed a 2019 or 2020 federal income tax return, used the non-filer tool in 2020 to register for a stimulus payments, or if you already registered for the advance Child Tax Credit payments using the Non-Filer sign-up tool. That tool, the first of the three Child Tax Credit tools, helps taxpayers who aren’t normally required to file an income tax return to easily register for the Child Tax Credit advance payments. The credit is nonrefundable, meaning you don’t need income to receive it (normally to take advantage of a tax credit you need income that it would offset).
The latest updates, including a link to FAQs, are posted on the IRS website on its Advanced Child Tax Credit Payments In 2021 page.
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Huffington Post reports, “Parents Are Already Budgeting For New Child Tax Payments”, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/child-tax-credit-monthly-parents-checks-budget_n_60d35643e4b06005129d98fa
The IRS has notified millions of parents that they will soon receive monthly payments worth as much as $300 per child, and some have already made plans for the money.
If the government can reach America’s poorest families, the child tax credit will go a long way toward alleviating child poverty in the United States. If fully implemented, Democrats say, the tax credit would cut child poverty in half.