Additional Child Tax Credit Resources

• For general questions about the CTC, read our FAQ
• If you’re looking for more detailed information, the federal government has launched a helpful site covering several important aspects of the CTC, including:
  • Eligibility for the program
  • Common immigration-related questions
  • How to file your taxes
  • CTC in Puerto Rico
  • And much more, including a Spanish-language version of the site

• Even if you have not yet claimed your CTC, you can still get your credit by using the GetCTC simplified filing tool.
• If you were not required to file a tax return by April 18 or you requested an extension, you can also claim the CTC by filing a full tax return:
  • If you feel comfortable filing online without much help, you can use IRS Free File, which is available to people whose income was $72,000 or less in 2021 and allows you to file yourself.
  • If you’re comfortable filing your taxes online with some virtual assistance, visit GetYourRefund.org where you can complete a virtual VITA intake. This site will guide you through the process and, if you need additional help, connect you to a VITA volunteer for support.
  • If you’d prefer to get in-person assistance, you can visit an IRS’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site. VITA is generally available to people who make $57,000 or less, those who have disabilities, and those who speak limited English.
  • For additional support with tax issues, find your local Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic for free legal help on tax issues with the IRS, or make an appointment with your local Taxpayer Assistance Center.
• If you want to help others get their CTC, here are the resources you’ll need to get started.

• The CTC substantially reduced child poverty from July to December 2021, when families received advance monthly payments of the CTC of up to $300 per child.
  • The first round of CTC payments in July 2021 kept 3 million children above the federal poverty line, while the final round of payments in December kept 3.7 million children above the federal poverty line and reached a total of 61.2 million children.
  • Researchers found that the CTC reduced food insecurity among households with children by 26 percent.
  • If the CTC is made permanent, it would substantially reduce child poverty nationwide.
• Unfortunately, when monthly CTC payments stopped at the end of 2021, the anti-poverty effects of the program vanished.
  • Between December 2021 and January 2022, the child poverty rate increased by 41 percent. In total, 3.7 million more children were living below the federal poverty line after the program expired.
  • If the expanded CTC is not reinstated, the progress made in fighting child poverty in 2021 will be lost permanently.

• CDF is fighting for an immediate, one-year extension of the expanded Child Tax Credit. In January 2022, we organized 400 partner organizations to call on Congress to pass the Build Back Better Act and extend the expanded CTC through 2022.
• CDF is also fighting for a permanent, inclusive, and robust child allowance.
  • In August 2021, more than 700 national, state, and local organizations joined our call to make the CTC permanent.
  • In early 2021, we outlined our priorities for a robust child allowance. In addition to making the expanded CTC permanent, Congress must:
    • Expand eligibility to the more than 300,000 children who are currently excluded because they live with distant relatives or family friends or move frequently between households.
    • Restore eligibility for the more than 1 million children without Social Security Numbers who were prohibited from accessing the CTC by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.