If you have a child that you have been receiving child tax credit payments for, but who has recently entered college, you might be unsure as to whether they are still eligible for this additional income.
In this article, we are going to be providing all the information that you will need in regard to this, whilst also offering some general information on child tax credit as well. Let’s get started.
Contents
What Is Child Tax Credit?
Child Tax Credit is intended to offer a tax break to families whose children sit within the appropriate criteria and are therefore eligible for a claim.
Who Is Eligible For Child Tax Credit?
There are various factors that go into being able to claim Child Tax credit, with each qualifying child needing to fit the appropriate criteria.
Every child that you claim for must have a valid Social Security number that is valid for employment. Let’s look at some of the other qualifying factors.
- Must be under the age of 18 at the end of the year.
- Must have a specific relationship to you, including any of the following: daughter, son, foster child, sibling, stepchild, step-sibling, half sibling, or a descendant of any of the above. This could include relations such as a grandchild or nephew/niece.
- Must be a United States citizen (both a U.S. national or a U.S. resident alien).
- Lived with you for more than six months
- Have the appropriate claim as your dependent within your tax return.
- Not providing any more than half of their financial support throughout the yea
- Has not filed a joint return with their spouse for that tax year. However, if this has been filed then the claim is still possible if it has only been done to claim a refund of estimated tax paid or withheld income tax.
The only way that you can qualify for the entire amount possible with Child Tax Credit for each child is to meet all of these eligibility requirements as well as meet the requirements in regard to annual income.
Your income must not exceed the following:
- $75,000 if you are filing the claim as a single or if you are married and are filing a separate return.
- $112, 500 if you are claiming as the head of the household.
- $150,000 if you are filing a joint return, are married, or are filing as a qualifier widower or widow.
However, parents and guardians that have higher incomes may still be able to claim partial credit.
You could be eligible for partial Child Tax Credit if you fit into the following criteria:
- You are a single-parent family- or head of the household- with an annual income of $200,000 or less.
- A married couple that is filing a joint return and has a combined income of $400,000 or less.
- Anyone else that has an income of $200,000 or less annually.
Are College Students Eligible For Child Tax Credit?
Certain college students are indeed eligible for Child Tax Credit, though they have to meet the specific criteria required.
Any dependent children between the ages of 18 and 24 are able to qualify to allow their parents to receive $500 in tax credit annually.
There are other requirements that need to be abided by in order to claim that credit, though, including having to pay more than half of the expenses of the child you are hoping to claim for.
As mentioned above, you will also need to ensure that your adjusted gross income is $75,000 (or less) as a single claim filer, $112,500 as the head of a household (a single parent household), or $150,000 when filing jointly.
It is important to remember that the Child Tax Credit for college students is a one-time payment rather than a recurring monthly paycheck.
However, you are able to claim for each dependent child that you have that is in college.
Therefore, if you have two children between the ages of 18 to 24- who are dependent-, then you could get a one-time payment of $1,000.
How To Claim Child Tax Credit
Whether it is for a college-aged child or for any other child that you might want to make a claim for, you will need to enter your children- or whomever the dependents might be in relation to you- into the system by filling out Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
You will also need to complete and attach Schedule 8812, Credits for Qualifying Children and Other Dependents.
Can You Qualify For Child Tax Credit If You Don’t File Taxes?
Yes, you can still qualify for this kind of tax credit if you do not file taxes.
Say for example that you have a dependent who is in college, but you don’t normally file tax returns, then you can still make a claim for them.
An online tool on the IRS website can help you out in this situation, called the Child Tax Credit Non-Filer Sign-Up Tool.
This tool is intended to help parents or guardians who still qualify for these credits but do not typically file taxes.
The service is free, efficient, easy to use, and will provide the IRS with all of the basic information that they will need in order to calculate and pay any advance Child Tax Credit payments.
Final Thoughts
The answer to the main question within this article- whether college students are eligible for Child Tax Credits- is yes, as long as both you as the dependent- and the student themselves- fit into the correct criteria.
Hopefully, you now have a more thorough understanding of Child Tax Credits and college students, as well as an idea of how to go about making a claim.