The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Updated June 22, 2020 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov R41873 SUMMARY The Child Tax Credit: Current Law This report provides an overview of the child tax credit under current law, including temporary changes made by the 2017 tax revision (P.L. 115-97).

). R41873 June 22, 2020 Margot L. Crandall-Hollick Acting Section Research Manager When calculating the total amount of federal income taxes owed, eligible taxpayers can reduce their federal income tax liability by the amount of the child tax credit. Currently, eligible families that claim the child tax credit can subtract up to $2,000 per qualifying child from their federal income tax liability. The maximum amount of credit a family can receive is equal to the number of qualifying children in a family multiplied by $2,000. If a family'’s tax liability is less than the value of their child tax credit, they may be eligible for a refundable credit calculated using the earned income formula. Under this formula, a family is eligible for a refund equal to 15% of their earnings in excess of $2,500, up to the maximum amount of the refundable portion of the credit. The maximum amount of the refundable portion of the credit is $1,400 per qualifying child. The credit phases out for single parents with income over $200,000 and married couples with income over $400,000. Many of these parameters are scheduled to expire at the end of 2025 under P.L. 115-97.

. The child tax credit was created in 1997 by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 ( P.L. 105-34) to help ease the financial burden that families incur when they have children. Like other tax credits, the child tax credit reduces tax liability dollar for dollar of do llar of the value of the credit. Initially the child tax credit was a nonrefundable credit for most families. A nonrefundable tax credit can only reduce a taxpayer'’s income tax liability to zero, while a refundable tax credit can exceed a taxpayer'’s income tax liability, providing a cash payment to low-income taxpayers who owe little or no income tax.

Since it was first enacted, the child tax credit has undergone significant changes. Most recently at the end of 2017, Congress Congres s expanded the credit, especially for middle- and upper-income taxpayers, by doubling the credit amount and more than tripling the income level at which the credit begins to phase out. AdditionalAdditionally, although comparatively more modest, changes were made to the refundable portion of the credit as well, including increasing the refundable credit amount from $1,000 to $1,400 per child and lowering the refundability threshold from $3,000 to $2,500. These changes are scheduled to be in effect from 2018 through the end of 2025.

Estimates from the IRS indicate that the total dollar amount of the child tax credit has increased significantly since enactment from approximately $22 billion to $5451 billion for 2017. These estimates do not include the impact of recent legislative changes made by P.L. 115-97, which will, all else being equal, expand the total cost of this tax benefit.

The Tax Policy Center (TPC) estimated the distribution of the child tax credit by income level for 20182019 under current law (including the changes made by P.L. 115-97) and found that the majority of child tax credit dollars will go to taxpayers with more than $75,000 of income, with nearly one-third of the benefit going to taxpayers with income between $100,000 and $200,000. In comparison, a relatively small share will go to very-low-income or very-high-income taxpayers. TPC also estimated that the vast majority of taxpayers with children will receive the child tax credit. AboutSlightly less than half of the lowest-income taxpayers with children will receive the credit and no taxpayers with children and income over $1 million will receive the credit. Finally, TPC estimated that taxpayers with income between $100,000 and $200,000 will on average receive the largest credit of over $3,000. Taxpayers with children and income under $20,000 will receive on average a credit of less than $1,000, while the wealthiest taxpayers with children will receive on average a credit of $10.

Congressional Research Service The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Current Law ................................................................................................................... 1 Detailed Overview of Current Credit ............................................................................ 2 Maximum Credit per Child .................................................................................... 2 The Nonrefundable $500 Credit for Non-Child Tax Credit Dependents......................... 3 Maximum Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) per Child, the Refundability Threshold and Refundability Rate ........................................................................ 3 The Phaseout Threshold and Phaseout Rate .............................................................. 4 Definition of a Qualifying Child .................................................................................. 4 ID Requirements to Claim the Child Tax Credit.............................................................. 5 Disallowance of the Credit Due to Fraud or Reckless Disregard of the Rules ...................... 5 Data on the Child Tax Credit............................................................................................. 5 Total Child Tax Credit Dollars, 1998-2017 .................................................................... 6 Total Child Tax Credit Dollars by Income Level ............................................................. 8 Share of Taxpayers with Children Receiving the Child Tax Credit ..................................... 9 Average Child Tax Credit Amount.............................................................................. 10 Figures Figure 1 Child Tax Credit Amount by Income Level ............................................................. 2 Figure 2. Total Real Child Tax Credit Dollars, 1998-2017...................................................... 7 Figure 3. Estimated Share of Total Child Tax Credit Dollars by Income Level, 2019.................. 8 Figure 4. Estimated Share of Taxpayers with Children and All Taxpayers Receiving the Child Tax Credit by Income Level, 2019........................................................................ 10 Figure 5. Estimated Average Child Tax Credit Amount by Income Level for Taxpayers with Children and All Taxpayers, 2019 .......................................................................... 11 Tables Table 1. Overview of Key Aspects of the Child Tax Credit Under Current Law......................... 1 Contacts Author Information ....................................................................................................... 12 Congressional Research Service The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Introduction The child tax credit was created in 1997 by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (P.L. 105-34) to help ease the financial burden that families incur when they have children. Like other tax credits, the child tax credit reduces tax liability dollar for dollar of the value of the credit. Initially the child tax credit was a nonrefundable credit for most families. A nonrefundable tax credit can only reduce a taxpayer'’s income tax liability to zero, while a refundable tax credit can exceed a taxpayer' taxpayer’s income tax liability, providing a cash payment primarily to low -income taxpayers who owe little or no income tax. Over the past 20 years, legislative changes have significantly changed the credit, transforming it from a generally nonrefundable credit available only to the middle and upper-middle class, to a refundable credit that more low -income families are eligible to claim.

This report provides an overview of the credit under current law and also provides some summary data on these benefits. For a complete legislative history of the credit, see CRS Report R45124, The Child Tax Credit: Legislative History, by [author name scrubbed].

Current Law

, by Margot L. Crandall-Hollick. Current Law The child tax credit allows taxpayers to reduce their federal income tax liability (the income taxes owed before tax credits are applied) by up to $2,000 per qualifying child. If the value of the credit exceeds the amount of tax a family owes, the family may be eligible to receive a full or partial refund of the difference. The refundable portion of the credit is sometimes referred to as the additional child tax credit or ACTC. The total amount of their refund is calculated as 15% (the refundability rate) of earnings that exceed $2,500 (the refundability threshold), up to the maximum amount of the refundable portion of the credit ($1,400 per child).

The credit phases out for higher-income taxpayers. The child tax credit can offset a taxpayer's ’s Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) liability. Currently, the maximum credit per child, refundability threshold, and phaseout thresholds are not indexed for inflation. From 2018 to 2025, the maximum amount of the ACTC is indexed for inflation. Table 1 provides an overview of key provisions of the child tax credit under current law and how they will change, beginning in 2026, as scheduled under P.L. 115-97.

ACTC. a. Absent legislative action, many of the changes made to the child tax credit by P.L. 115-97 will expire and the credit parameters will revert to pre-2018 levels. b. The phaseout threshold for married taxpayers that file separate returns is $200,000 from 2018 -2025. Pre2018/post 2025, the phaseout threshold for married taxpayers that file separate returns is/will be $55,000 . Detailed Overview of Current Credit Detailed Overview of Current Credit

Each of the key parameters of the child tax credit as in effect from 2018-2025 through the end of 2025 is described in more detail below. The legislative changes made to the child tax credit by P.L. 115-97 have significantly expanded the child tax credit, especially for upper-income taxpayers, as illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1. The Child Tax Credit for a Married Couple with Two Children by Income Level, Before and After P.L. 115-97

Figure 1. Figure 1 Child Tax Credit Amount by Income Level Source: Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 24. Notes: This is a stylized example assuming the taxpayer has one qualifying child. In actuality, the ACTC is calculated based on earned income and the credit is phased down based on modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). In addition, in these examples, "married" (MAGI). Married refers to married taxpayers filing joint returns. The "notch"“notch” in the graph when the credit amount equals $2,8001,400 (the vertical axis) occurs when the maximum ACTC amount has been reached.

Maximum Credit per Child

Eligible families can claim a child tax credit and reduce their federal income tax liability by up to $2,000 per qualifying child.¹ 1 The maximum credit a family can receive is equal to the number of qualifying children a taxpayer has, multiplied by $2,000. For example, a family with two qualifying children may be eligible for a $4,000 credit. Families may receive the child tax credit as a reduction in tax liability (the nonrefundable portion of the credit), a refundable credit (the 1 T he child tax credit can be found in Section 24 of the Intern al Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. §24). Congressional Research Service 2 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law amount of the credit in excess of tax liability), or a combination of both.² 2 The refundable portion of the credit—the ACTC—is discussed in the subsequent section.

Maximum Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) per Child, the Refundability Threshold and Refundability Rate

Under the earned income formula, a taxpayer may claim an ACTC equal to 15% of the family's earned income in excess of $2,500, up to the maximum ACTC amount (i.e., up to $1,400 multiplied by the number of qualifying children). The $2,500 amount is referred to as the refundability threshold; the 15% is referred to as the refundability rate. If a taxpayer's earnings are below the refundability threshold, they are ineligible for the ACTC. For every dollar of earnings above this amount, the value of the taxpayer's ACTC increases by 15 cents, up to the maximum amount of the credit ($1,400 per qualifying child). For purposes of calculating the ACTC, earned income is defined as wages, tips, and other compensation included in gross income. It also includes net self-employment income (self-employment income after deduction of one-half of Social Security payroll taxes paid by a self-employed individual).

Beginning in 2026, the refundability threshold is scheduled to increase to $3,000 and the maximum ACTC per child (the amount that exceeds income tax liability) is scheduled to decrease to $1,000 per child.

The Phaseout Threshold and Phaseout Rate

The child tax credit phases out for higher-income families. The $2,000-per-child value of the credit falls by a certain amount as a family'’s income rises. Specifically, for every $1,000 of modified adjusted gross income (MAGI)⁶ 6 above a threshold amount, the credit falls by $50—or effectively by 5% of MAGI above the threshold. The threshold amount depends on a taxpayer's ’s filing status, and equals $200,000 for single parents and married taxpayers filing separate returns, and $400,000 for married taxpayers filing joint returns. The actual income level at which the credit is entirely phased out (i.e., equals zero) depends on the number of qualifying children a taxpayer has. Generally, it takes $40,000 of MAGI above the phaseout threshold to completely phase out $2,000 of credit. For example, the credit will completely phase out for a married couple with two children if their MAGI exceeds $480,000 (see Figure 1).

. Definition of a Qualifying Child

In order to claim the child tax credit, a taxpayer'’s child must be considered "“a qualifying child" ” and meet several requirements, which may differ from eligibility requirements for other child-relatedchildrelated tax benefits:

• 1. The child must be under 17 years of age during the entire year for which the taxpayer claims the credit (for example, if the child was 16.5 years on December 31, 2017, the taxpayer could claim the credit on their 2017 federal income tax return).
• by the end of the year. (In other words, if the child turns 17 years old on December 31, 2020, the taxpayer cannot claim them as a qualifying child for the child tax credit on their 2020 income tax return.) 2. The child must be eligible to be claimed as a dependent on the taxpayer'’s return.⁷
• 3 7 Specifically: a. The child must be the taxpayer'’s son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, stepson, stepdaughter, niece, nephew, or an eligible foster child of the taxpayer.
• 4. The child must live at the same principal residence as the taxpayer for more taxpayer. 6 With respect to the child tax credit, modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is equal to Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) increased by foreign earned income of U.S. Citizens abroad, including income earned in Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico. For more information on AGI see CRS Report RL30110, Federal Individual Income Tax Terms: An Explanation, by Mark P. Keightley and Jeffrey M. Stupak; and CRS Report RL32808, Overview of the Federal Tax System , by Molly F. Sherlock and Donald J. Marples. 7 See the definition of a qualifying child for he dependent exemption in IRC 152(c). From 2018 to 2025, due to the temporary suspension of the dependent exemption enacted as part of P.L. 115-97, taxpayers may no longer claim their children as dependents for purposes of the dependent exemption, although this does not affect eligibility for the credit and the definition of a dependent remains unchanged by the law. IRC Section 151(d)(5)(B). Congressional Research Service 4 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law b. The child must live at the same principal residence as the taxpayer for more than half the year for which the taxpayer wishes to claim the credit. cthan half the year for which the taxpayer wishes to claim the credit.
• 5. The child cannot provide more than half of their own support during the tax year. 3year.
• 6. The child must be a U.S. citizen or national. If they are not a U.S. citizen or national, they must be a resident of the United States.

8 The age and citizenship requirements for a qualifying child for the child tax credit differ from the definition of qualifying child used for other tax benefits and can cause confusion among taxpayers. For example, a taxpayer'’s 18-year-old child may meet all the requirements for a qualifying child for the EITC, but will be too old to be eligible for the child tax credit.

ID Requirements to Claim the Child Tax Credit

The statute requires that taxpayers who intend to claim the child tax credit provide a valid taxpayer identification number (TIN) for each qualifying child on their federal income tax return. Under a temporary change in effect from 2018 through the end of 2025, the child'’s TIN must be a work-authorized Social Security number (SSN). The SSN must be issued before the due date of the tax return. Failure to provide the child'’s SSN may result in the taxpayer being denied the credit (both the nonrefundable and refundable portions of the credit).

Absent any legislative changes, beginning in 2026, a valid TIN for qualifying children will include individual taxpayer identification numbers (ITINs) and Social Security numbers (SSNs). ITINs are issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to noncitizens who do not have and are not eligible to receive SSNs. ITINs are supplied solely so that noncitizens are able to comply with federal tax law, and do not affect immigration status.

In addition, in order to claim the child tax credit in a given tax year, the taxpayer must also provide their own taxpayer identification number that must be issued before the due date of the tax return. This is a permanent ID requirement that is not scheduled to expire.

Disallowance of the Credit Due to Fraud or Reckless Disregard of the Rules

A tax filer is barred from claiming the child tax credit for a period of 10 years after the IRS makes a final determination to reduce or disallow a tax filer'’s child tax credit because that individual made a fraudulent child tax credit claim. A tax filer is barred from claiming the child tax credit for a period of two years after the IRS determines that the individual made a child tax credit claim " “due to reckless and intentional disregard of [the] rules"” of the child tax credit, but that disregard was not found to be due to fraud.⁸

9 Data on the Child Tax Credit

Estimates from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Tax Policy Center highlight several key aspects of the child tax credit:

• The  8 9 The total dollar amount of the child tax credit has grown over time: Data from the IRS indicate that the total dollar amount of the child tax credit has See IRC 24 (c)(2). See IRC Section 24(g). Congressional Research Service 5 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law    increased significantly since enactment. These estimates do not include the impact of recent legislative changes made by P.L. 115-97, which, all else being equal, will expand the total cost of this tax benefit.
• In 2018 In 2019, the majority of the tax benefit will gowent to taxpayers with income between $75,000 and $500,000:: The Tax Policy Center (TPC) estimates that the majority of child tax credit dollars in 2018 will go2019 went to taxpayers with more than $75,000 of income, with nearly one-third of the benefit going to taxpayers with income between $100,000 and $200,000.⁹10 In comparison, a relatively small share will gowent to very-low-income or very-high-income taxpayers.
• In 2018, over In 2019, approximately 90% of taxpayers with children andand income between $30,000 and $500,000 will receivereceived the child tax credit. The Tax Policy Center (TPC) estimates that across most income groups, the vast majority of taxpayers with children will receivereceived the child tax credit in 20182019. About half of the lowest-income taxpayers will receivelowestincome taxpayers received the credit and virtually no taxpayers with children and income over $1 million will receivereceived the credit.
• In 2018 In 2019, taxpayers with income between $100,000 and $200,000 will on average receiveon average received the largest credit. The Tax Policy Center (TPC) estimates that taxpayers with children and income between $100,000 and $200,000 will on average receive received a credit of over $3,000 in 20182019. Taxpayers with children with income under $20,000 will receivereceived on average a credit of less than $1,000, while the wealthiest taxpayers with children will receivereceived on average a credit of $10.

Total Child Tax Credit Dollars, 1998-2015

2017 IRS estimates of the amount of total child tax credit dollars (inflation adjusted to 20152017 dollars) received by taxpayers indicate that this tax benefit has more than doubled in size since enactment, from aggregate receipt of $22 billion in 1998 to approximately $5451 billion in 20152017, as illustrated in Figure 2. 10 T he T ax Policy Center measure of income used in their analysis expanded cash income (ECI) which is defined as cash income plus (1) tax-exempt employee and employer contributions to health insurance and other fringe benefits, (2) employer contributions to tax-preferred retirement accounts, (3) income earned within retirement accounts, and (4) food stamps. For more information, see http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/resources/income-measure-used-distributionalanalyses-tax-policy-center. Congressional Research Service 6 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law , as illustrated in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Total Real Child Tax Credit Dollars, 1998-2015

2017 Source: IRS Statistics of Income Table 3.3 and the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U. Note: The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that the temporary changes to the child tax credit will cost $573.4 billion between 2018 and 2026. (This estimate does not include the budgetary impact of the SSN requirement, which is estimated to save $29.8 billion over the same time period.) JCX-67-17.

A significant component in the growth of the child tax credit has been the growth in the refundable portion of the credit, which now comprises approximately half of child tax credit dollars received by taxpayers. (For an overview of the legislative changes that have influenced the expansion of both the refundable and nonrefundable portions of the credit, see CRS Report R45124, The Child Tax Credit: Legislative History, by [author name scrubbed].) The most , by Margot L. Crandall-Hollick.) The most recent IRS data available are for the 20152017 tax year (i.e., 20152017 income tax returns filed in 2016), 2018), and hence do not include the impact of the legislative changes made to the credit by P.L. 115-97. . As previously discussed, these legislative changes are currently scheduled to be in effect from 2018 through the end of 2025. The Joint Committee on Taxation has estimated that the modification to the child tax credit formula will cost an estimated $573.4 billion between 2018 and 2026, or on average $64 billion a year.¹⁰ 11 (These estimates include the budgetary cost of the $500 nonrefundable credit for non-child tax-credit-eligible dependents.) JCT also estimates that the new SSN requirement will save $29.8 billion between 2018 and 2026, or on average $3 billion per year.

Joint Committee on T axation, Estimated Budget Effects of the Conference Agreement for HR.1, the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act”, December 18, 2017, JCX-67-17. 11 Congressional Research Service 7 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Total Child Tax Credit Dollars by Income Level

The Tax Policy Center (TPC) estimated the distribution of aggregate child tax credit by income level¹¹ for 2018 level for 2019 under current law (i.e., including the changes made by P.L. 115-97).).12 These estimates include the $500 credit for non-child tax-credit-eligible dependents. TPC estimates that nearly one-third of all child tax credit dollars (31%) will go30.5%) went to taxpayers with income between $100,000 and $200,000, as illustrated in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Estimated Share of Total Child Tax Credit Dollars by Income Level, 2018

Source: Tax Policy Center Model T18-0033. Notes: Income is defined as expanded cash income (ECI) which equals cash income plus certain other tax-exempt forms of income and benefits like food stamps. These estimates include the $500 credit for non-child-tax credit eligible dependents.

Slightly more than one. One-quarter of all child tax credit dollars (26.5%) will go (25.0%) went to taxpayers with income under $50,000. Lower-income taxpayers will generally receive a credit of $1,400 or less per child, depending on their earnings. In contrast, higher-income taxpayers with sufficient income tax liability will receive a credit of $2,000 per child. For example, a single parent with two children and $15,000 of income will be is eligible for a $1,875 credit (received entirely as the refundable child credit or ACTC), less than the maximum ACTC for two children of $2,800 (2x $1,400) and less than the maximum credit for two children of $4,000 (2 x $2,000). The highest-income taxpayers willdo not receive a credit due to the credit phaseout.

Figure 3. Estimated Share of Total Child Tax Credit Dollars by Income Level, 2019 Source: Tax Policy Center Model T20-0091. Notes: Income is defined as expanded cash income (ECI), which equals cash income plus certain other taxexempt forms of income and benefits like food stamps. These estimates include the $500 credit for non -child-tax credit eligible dependents. For the purposes of these estimates that T ax Policy Center uses a broad measure of pretax income called “expanded cash income” or ECI. ECI equals cash income plus (1) tax -exempt employee and employer contributions to health insurance and other fringe benefits, (2) employer contributions to tax-preferred retirement accounts, (3) income earned within retirement accounts, and (4) food stamps. According to T PC, “[t]he primary motivation for adopting this broader income measure was to characterize differences in the economic status of individual taxpayers more completely and accurately.” For more information, see http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/resources/income-measure-used-distributionalanalyses-tax-policy-center. 12 Congressional Research Service 8 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Share of Taxpayers with Children Receiving the Child Tax Credit Share of Taxpayers with Children Receiving the Child Tax Credit

TPC estimated the share of all taxpayers and taxpayers with children that would receive the child tax credit in 2018taxpayers with children and all taxpayers that received the child tax credit in 2019. The estimates indicate that among taxpayers with children, almost all taxpayers will receive received the child tax credit. More than 90% of taxpayers with children and income between $40,000 and $500,000 will receivereceived the child tax credit. In contrast, aboutless than half (5147.8%) of taxpayers with children and income under $10,000 will receivereceived the child tax credit in 2018, and less than one-fifth (182019, and about one-third (38.6%) of taxpayers with children and income between $500,000 and $1 million will receive received the credit, as illustrated in Figure 4. . Fewer low-income families with children will benefit from the child tax credit since taxpayers with income under $2,500 (the refundability threshold) willare not be eligible for the refundable portion of the credit. In contrast, due to the phaseout of the credit at higher income levels, virtually no taxpayers with children and income over $1 million will beare currently eligible to claim it. Congressional Research Service 9 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Figure 4. Estimated Share of Taxpayers with Children and All Taxpayers Receiving the Child Tax Credit by Income Level, 2019 Source: Tax Policy Center Model T20-0091. Notes: eligible to claim it.

Figure 4. Estimated Share of All Taxpayers and Taxpayers with Children Receiving the Child Tax Credit by Income Level, 2018

Source: Tax Policy Center Model T18-0033. Notes: Income is defined as expanded cash income (ECI), which equals cash income plus certain other tax-exempttaxexempt forms of income and benefits like food stamps. These estimates include the $500 credit for non -child-tax credit eligible dependents. Taxpayers with children are those claiming an exemption for children at home or away from home or with children qualifying for the Child Tax Credit or EITC.

child tax credit or earned income tax credit (EITC). Average Child Tax Credit Amount

TPC estimated the average child tax credit amount by income level for all taxpayers and taxpayers with children in 2018taxpayers with children and all taxpayers in 2019. Their estimates indicate that taxpayers with children and income between $100,000 and $200,000 will receivereceived the largest credit on average—an estimated $3,100. 040. Taxpayers with children and income under $20,000 will receivereceived on average a credit of less than Congressional Research Service 10 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law $1,000, while the wealthiest taxpayers with children (income over $1 million) will on average receive received a credit of $10. Lower-income taxpayers are eligible to receive a credit of up to $1,400 per child, although they may receive less depending on their earned income. In contrast, higher-income taxpayers, with sufficient income tax liability, will beare eligible for up to a $2,000 credit per child. The highest-income taxpayers will beare ineligible for the credit due to the phaseout.

Figure 5. Estimated Average Child Tax Credit Amount by Income Level for All Taxpayers and Taxpayers with Children, 2018

for Taxpayers with Children and All Taxpayers, 2019 Source: Tax Policy Center Model T18-0033. T20-0091. Notes: Income is defined as expanded cash income (ECI), which equals cash income plus certain other tax-exempttaxexempt forms of income and benefits like food stamps. These estimates include the $500 credit for non -child-tax credit eligible dependents. Taxpayers with children are those claiming an exemption for children at home or away from home or with children qualifying for the child tax credit or earned income tax credit (EITC). Congressional Research Service 11 The Child Tax Credit: Current Law Author Information Margot L. Crandall-Hollick Acting Section Research Manager Acknowledgments This report was updated in June 2020 with the assistance of Joseph Hughes, research assistant. Disclaimer This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material. Congressional Research Service R41873 · VERSION 22 · UPDATED 12 away from home or with children qualifying for the Child Tax Credit or EITC.