What is the cutoff for earned income credit

Tax information center: Filing: Credits

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect updates to the Earned Income Credit from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

The Earned Income Credit (EIC), otherwise known as Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a valuable credit for low-income taxpayers who work and earn an income of a certain amount.

This credit is highly valuable and is often missed—allowing you to keep more of your hard-earned money.

How much is the Earned Income Tax Credit worth?

Taking the time to check the Earned Income Credit eligibility can pay off, as the tax benefit can be worth up to $6,728 depending on your:

• Filing status
• Income
• Number of qualifying children who can’t be claimed by another taxpayer

(Keep in mind: The Earned Income Credit is refundable, so you can receive the credit as part of your refund.)

What exactly qualifies as earned income?

Earned income includes:

• Net earnings from self-employment
• Non-taxable combat pay
• Salary
• Tips
• Union strike benefits
• Wages
• Some long-term disability benefits

What sources of income doesn’t qualify?

• Passive income, or income you aren’t actively generating on your own, like interest and dividends
• Pay you get while incarcerated, retirement income, Social Security, unemployment benefits and alimony
• Child support

Earned Income Credit eligibility

You’re probably wondering how to qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Earned Income Credit eligibility is as follows:

• You and your spouse (if filing jointly) must have valid Social Security numbers (SSN) by the due date of your tax return (including extensions)
• You generally can’t file as married filing separately (MFS)
• You must be a U.S. citizen or resident alien all year
• You can’t file a Form 2555
• Your investment income is $10,000 or less
• You must have earned income less than the adjusted gross income (AGI) limit for your filing status and number of qualifying children 

Earned Income Tax Credit eligibility if you have no children

If you don’t have qualifying children, Earned Income Tax Credit eligibility is as follows:

• You must not be a dependent of another taxpayer
• You must live in the United States for more than half the year

Childless taxpayers have no maximum age limit for tax year 2021. (Previously it was 65.) Additionally, the minimum age to qualify is 19 years, or 24 years for a full-time student (previously it was age 25 regardless of student status).  

Earned Income Credit qualifications with one or more children

Earned Income Credit qualifications with one or more children are as follows:

Age —

Your child is under the age of 19 or a full-time student under the age of 24 and is younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly). (If your child is permanently and totally disabled, the age requirements don’t apply.)

Qualified foster youth and homeless youth ages 18 to 24 can now claim the credit even if you’re a student. 

Relationship —

A qualifying child must be:

• A son/daughter, stepson/stepdaughter, or eligible foster child
• A brother/sister, stepbrother/stepsister, half-brother/half-sister
• A descendant of any of those people (for example, a grandchild, niece or nephew)

These rules also apply to relationships:

• Relationships established by marriage aren’t ended by death or divorce
• An adopted child is treated as your own child. An adopted child is any child placed with you for legal adoption

Residency —

The child must live with you in the same main home within the U.S. for more than half of the year. This doesn’t include Puerto Rico or other U.S. territories or possessions.

Exceptions are allowed for:

• Temporary absences
• Children born or deceased during the year (if your home was the child’s home for over half of the time they were alive)
• Kidnapped children
• Those who are on extended active duty outside of the United States. They can be treated as having a main home within the United States. Extended active duty equals more than 90 days or for an indefinite period.

Citizenship —

A qualifying child must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or a U.S. resident. A child who is a resident of Canada or Mexico doesn’t qualify.

Qualifying child and dependency requirement —

Your qualifying child can’t be used by more than one person to claim the EIC. You don’t have to claim the child as a dependent. However, a married child is only a qualifying child for EIC purposes if you could claim the child as a dependent.

Marital status —

A qualifying child must not file a joint return unless both conditions are true:

• They only file a return to claim a refund of taxes withheld or paid
• No tax liability would exist for either spouse if separate returns were filed

EIC for separated spouses —

Separated spouses, those with filing status of married filing separately, are now allowed to claim the EITC if: 

They live with a qualifying child for more than half the year, and either  

• Don’t have the same principal place of abode as their spouse for the last six months of the year, or  
• Have a decree, instrument, or agreement (i.e., other than a divorce decree) and do not live with their spouse at the end of the year.

Social Security number (SSN) requirement —

You can  claim the “childless” EIC even if your dependent doesn’t have a valid Social Security number for tax year 2021 and beyond. Previously, if you had a child who didn’t have an SSN, you couldn’t claim any EIC.

Filing status —

You, generally, can’t be married filing separately and claim the EIC. There is an exception for separated spouses, however.

Earned income —

You must have earned income to meet the qualifications for the Earned Income Credit. Unearned income (interest, sale of investments, pensions, and unemployment) doesn’t qualify. If you’re a military taxpayer with nontaxable combat pay, you can include the combat pay in income to calculate the EIC .

The Earned Income Credit income limits

Your earned income and AGI must be less than these limits:

• With no qualifying children: Maximum AGI $21,430 (filing Single, Head of Household, Widowed, or Married Filing Separately); $27,380 for Married Filing Jointly)
• With one qualifying child: $42,158 (filing as Single, Head of Household, Widowed, or Married Filing Separately); or $48,108 if Married Filing Jointly
• With two qualifying children: $47,915 (filing Single, Head of Household, Widowed, or Married Filing Separately); or $53,865 if Married Filing Jointly
• With three or more qualifying children: $51,464 (filing Single, Head of Household, Widowed, or Married Filing Separately); or $57,414 if Married Filing Jointly

Investment income limit —

The investment income amount limit is $10,000, adjusted for inflation annually beginning in tax year 2021. Investment income includes:

• Interest
• Dividends
• Capital gains
• Royalties
• Rental income
• Passive activity income

Filing state tax returns

If you have to file a state tax returns, note that the Earned Income Tax Credit is only calculated on your federal return. Some states offer their own version of the credit, which may be based on the federal amount or calculated separately. Review the instructions for the state you’re filing.

If you didn’t claim the EIC last year, can you amend your return and claim it?

To claim the Earned Income Credit for last year, you must amend your return by filing Form 1040X by the later of these dates:

• Three years from the due date of your original return
• Two years from the date you paid the tax

Returns filed before the due date — without regard to extensions, such as tax Form 1040 or Form 1040X — are considered filed on the due date. Note that if you now have a valid SSN but didn’t claim the EIC last year because you or your child had an ITIN, you may not go back and amend your return to claim the EIC for earlier years.

What if you have an EIC error?

An error when filling out the EIC portion of your return could delay your full refund. If the IRS denies your whole claim you:

• Must pay back EIC amount you’ve been paid in error, plus interest
• Need to file Form 8862, Information to Claim Certain Credits After Disallowance before you can reclaim the credit if the credit was denied or reduced for any reason other than a math or clerical error

EITC filers facing refund delays should file as they normally would

Taxpayers who claim the EIC could have their refunds delayed until mid-February.

Taxpayers should file as they normally would, even if they expect their refund will be delayed. The IRS still expects to issue most refunds in less than 21 days.

More help with the Earned Income Credit

If you’re looking for more hands-on guidance with claiming the Earned Income Credit, H&R Block can help. Whether you make an appointment with one of our knowledgeable tax pros or choose one of our online tax filing products, you can count on H&R Block to help you get back the most money possible.

You can also check out our Coronavirus Tax Resource Center for up-to-date information on the tax impacts of the pandemic.

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