The 3rd stimulus bill passed by Congress and signed by President Biden quietly included a major expansion of the Child Tax Credit for the vast majority of American families. While stimulus checks have received the biggest amount of news coverage, the increase in the Child Tax Credit dwarfs the amount most people will receive from all three checks combined if they have more than one child.
There are some notable changes to the Child Tax Credit in the 3rd stimulus bill. For the first time 17-year-old dependents now qualify for the credit; the credit has been increased to $3,000 per child and $3,600 per child under age 6; the $2,500 earnings floor has been done away with; the credit is fully refundable and not taxable; and most importantly, people can choose to have half of their credit paid early by telling the IRS to send monthly payments from July 2021 to December 2021 instead of having to wait to claim it on their tax returns.
Unfortunately this expansion of the Child Tax Credit is only for one year unless Congress acts. Many in Congress are confident that the push to make this expansion permanent will intensify once Americans begin to get their monthly checks deposited.
All in all, this is a HUGE deal for many American families and has the potential to lift millions of people out of poverty. I only hope that Congress will move to make this expansion permanent.
justin412 Wrote: I don't have any kids, but I'm 100% in favor of anything that helps reduce childhood poverty. I really hope Congress will be able to get their act together and make this permanent.