If the child is born in the last week of December, will the child still qualify for the Earned Income Credit and how do you file without a social security number?
Normally, to be your qualifying child, the child must have lived with you for more than 6 months of the tax year (for the entire year, if an eligible foster child). However, if the child fails the residency test because the child was born or died during the year, the child is considered to meet the test if the child lived with you for the entire time he or she was alive during the tax year.
For example, if your child was born on October 1, 2000, and lived with you for the remainder of the year, your child meets the residency test. However, if your child was born on April 1, 2000, lived with you until August 1, 2000, and then lived with his or her other parent, the child was alive for more than 6 months of 2000, but lived with each parent for only 4 months. Therefore, neither parent can claim the Earned Income Credit on the basis of that child.
If your child does not have a social security number, apply for one by filling out Form SS-5 with the Social Security Administration, or call the Social Security Administration at 800-772-1213. It usually takes about 2 weeks to get an social security number.
If the filing deadline is approaching and you still do not have a social security number, file the return on time without claiming the Earned Income Credit. After receiving the social security number, file Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, claiming the Earned Income Credit. Attach a completed Schedule EIC, Earned Income Credit.
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My child was born and only lived 40 minutes. Can she be used as a qualifying child when figuring the Earned Income Credit and the new Child Tax Credit?
If your child was born alive and died during the same year, and the exemption tests are met, you can take the full exemption. This is true even if the child lived only for a moment. Whether your child was born alive depends on state or local law. There must be proof of a live birth shown by an official document such as a birth certificate. Under these circumstances, if you do not have a social security number for the child, you may attach a copy of the child's birth certificate instead and enter "DIED" in column 2 of line 6c of the Form 1040 or 1040A.
Since you have determined that you are eligible to claim your child's exemption, you would also be eligible to claim the Child Tax Credit. Please refer to the Instructions for Form 1040 or Instructions for Form 1040A for the Child Tax Credit. The referenced pages will explain who qualifies for this credit and how to calculate it.
The Earned Income Credit generally requires that you provide a valid social security number for your qualifying child. However, if you meet all the other requirements to claim this credit and your child was born and died in the same year, you will not be required to provide a social security number for that child. Instead, you may enter "DIED" on line 4 of Schedule EIC, Earned Income Credit, and attach a copy of the child's birth certificate.
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In order to claim the Earned Income Credit, does the child have to be claimed as a dependent?
A qualifying child for the Earned Income Credit does not need to qualify as a dependent.
Refer to Publication 596, Earned Income Credit, for a full discussion of the Earned Income Credit rules.
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If you are single with two children who lived with you all year, but are releasing the dependency exemption for one of your dependents via Form 8332, can both children still be considered qualifying children for Earned Income Credit purposes?
Yes, your child does not have to be your dependent to be a qualifying child unless he or she is married.
To determine if you qualify for Earned Income Credit, please review the requirements in Publication 596, Earned Income Credit.
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If the noncustodial parent receives permission from the custodial parent to claim a child on his or her tax return, is the noncustodial parent eligible for the Earned Income Credit?
The noncustodial parent cannot claim the Earned Income Credit on the basis of that child because the child did not live with that parent. The custodial parent may be able to claim the Earned Income Credit. A qualifying child for the Earned Income Credit does not need to be a dependent.
Refer to Publication 596, Earned Income Credit, for the Earned Income Credit rules.
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My wife and I have two children and we are going to file separate returns this year. Can we each claim one child for the Earned Income Credit?
In order to qualify for the Earned Income Credit, your filing status cannot be Married Filing Separately. If you are married, you usually must file a joint return to claim the Earned Income Credit.
However, if you are married and your spouse did not live in your home at any time during the last 6 months of the year, you may be able to file as Head of Household. In that case, you may be able to claim the Earned Income Credit.
Please refer to Publication 596, Earned Income Credit, for a complete discussion of the Earned Income Credit. Refer to Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information, for the Head of Household filing status rules.
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