Can I Claim The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)?

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The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is one of the tax credits in USA that is particularly meant for moderate-income families and taxpayers. Earned Income Tax Credit is refundable and it can reduce the tax liability of taxpayers if their income and dependent requirements meet required specifications. It means that the taxpayer will definitely get a refund if the credit pays for total tax bill, but yet there are leftover funds. The refund will be equal to that amount. You can get all types of tax credits along with the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to minimize you tax liabilities.

What Is Earned Income In USA?

If you receive any type of payment for doing any work or employment, it is called as “Earned Income”. Earned income may be reported on Form W-2 or Form 1099. The list of examples of earned income in USA is given below:

Wages
Salary
Tips
Royalty
Commission
Combat pay
Nontaxable combat pay
Jury duty pay
Self-employment income
Long-term disability

Do I Qualify For Earned Income Tax Credit?

There are several qualifications for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Black Ink, the best accounting solutions provider in USA, is providing the list of eligibility criteria for EITC. Go through the list carefully to see whether you qualify to avail U.S. Earned Income Tax Credit. If you are finding any difficulty, feel free to request callback to our representative.

The taxpayer must have an earned income (check above list for example).
The taxpayer must have a valid Social Security Number in USA. Furthermore, the spouse and qualifying children must also have one if the taxpayer is claiming them or filing married jointly.
The filing status of taxpayer cannot be married filing separately to claim
The claimer should be a U.S. resident or citizen for the whole year. If not, then a non-resident married to a U.S. resident or citizen who is filing a joint return can also claim
To claim EITC, the taxpayer must meet the limits of earned income, AGI and investment income that are listed below.
The claimer taxpayer cannot be the qualifying child of another person.
To claim the EITC, claimer’s qualifying child cannot be used by more than one person.
For Foreign Earned Income, the claimer cannot file Form 2555/2555-EZ.

If the claimer does not have a Qualifying Child, then the following requirements must be fulfilled in such case:

The claimer must be at least 25 but younger than 65 years of age at the year end.
The claimer must be living in United States for more than half of the year duration.
The claimer must not be the Qualifying Child of another person.

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Earned Income Tax Credit Income & Maximum Credit Amounts For 2019:

For the current year, the Earned income tax credit income & maximum credit amounts in USA are tabled below:

Filing Status	Qualifying Children Claimed
Filing Status	Zero	One	Two	Three
Single, Head of Household, or Widowed	$15,570	$41,094	$46,703	$50,162
Married Filing Jointly	$21,370	$46,884	$52,493	$55,952

Investment Income Limit:
Investment income must be $3,600 or less than $3,600 for Tax Year 2019.

Maximum Credit Amounts:
The maximum amount of credit for Tax Year 2019 is listed below:

$529 with no qualifying children
$3,526 with one qualifying child
$5,828 with two qualifying children
$6,557 with three or more qualifying children

If the claimer is a woman, she can claim additional 02 credits for women owned business from the IRS.

Earned Income Tax Credit Income & Maximum Credit Amounts For 2020:

For the tax year 2020, the Earned income tax credit income & maximum credit amounts in USA are tabled below:

Filing Status	Qualifying Children Claimed
Filing Status	Zero	One	Two	Three
Single, Head of Household, or Widowed	$15,820	$41,756	$47,440	$50,594
Married Filing Jointly	$21,710	$47,646	$53,330	$56,844

Investment Income Limit:
Investment income must be $3,650 or less than $3,650 for Tax Year 2020.

Maximum Credit Amounts:
The maximum amount of credit for Tax Year 2020 is listed below:

$538 with no qualifying children
$3,584 with one qualifying child
$5,920 with two qualifying children
$6,660 with three or more qualifying children

For further assistance, you can go through IRS 2020 annual inflation adjustments including tax rate, tax schedules & other tax changes in the United States.

Who Is A ‘Qualifying Child’ To Claim The EITC?

To claim Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in USA, the qualifying child must fulfill following requirements:

1. Age Specifications:

A child must fulfill one of the following age requirements for Earned Income Tax Credit:

A child must be under 19 years of age and younger than taxpayer or spouse.
A child must be under 24 years of age and a full-time student in the previous 05 months. Plus, child must be younger than taxpayer or spouse.
A child must be permanently and totally disabled at any time during the year. Plus, child can be of any age limit.

2. Relationship Specifications:

A child must fulfill one of the following relationship requirements for Earned Income Tax Credit:

A child must be a daughter, son, stepchild, adopted child, eligible foster child, or a successor of any of them.
A child must be a sister, brother, half-sister, half-brother, stepsister, stepbrother, or a successor of any of them.
A child must be a legally adopted individual.
A child must be a foster child who was placed with claimer by order of the court or a certified placement agency.

3. Residency Specifications:

A child must fulfill one of the following residency requirements for Earned Income Tax Credit:

A child must have lived with the claimer or the spouse for more than half the year.
A child must be in the United States.

4. Joint Return Specifications:

A child must fulfill one of the following joint return requirements for Earned Income Tax Credit:

A child must not have filed a joint return by the taxpayer and spouse.
The taxpayer and spouse must not have been required to file a joint return only to claim a refund.

How Do I Claim The Credit From IRS?

You must file a tax return in order to get your Earned Income Tax Credit in any state of USA. Even if you are not required to file taxes, and claim the credit on your return, you have to do it. Contact Black Ink for filing your tax returns. We provide the access to the right credits to each client. From filing tax returns in USA to claiming your Earned Income Tax Credit instantly, we are serving list of personal tax preparation services throughout USA.