The Federal Tax Credits Blog

Archive for the ‘Child Tax Credit’ Category

Question: When filing income tax- Is it possible to file as “Single Parent AND “Head of Household”, or is it one or…

…one or the other, & if so, which one is better? My situation is both (single parent & head of household- 2 kids, soon 2 jobs, no daycare expense). Also, when filling out tax forms for work…

“Personal Allowance Worksheet” – line E- Enter “1″ if you will file as head of household on your tax return…. Do I enter “1″?…

“Employee Withholding Allowance Certificate”- line 5- Total number of allowances you are claiming…

And… although I won’t not have any daycare expense, can I still get “child tax credit“?

If I accidentally fill it out wrong, what will happen (it’s so frikin’ confusing…)? Thank you for any help.
I meant to say “Single” (not single parent).
My kids are 17 & 10.

Answer: You’d file either as single or as head of household – head of household has better tax rates. It’s possible to be a single parent but not eligible to file as head of household, but if you are providing over half of the expenses for the year to provide a home for one or more of your children, and they live with you for more than half the year, you can probably file as head of household.

The child tax credit is separate from the dependent care credit. You’ll get one $1000 child tax credit for the younger child – it’s only available for kids under 17.

If you fill out the W-4 with too low a number of allowances, they’ll take more out of your check, but you’ll get the extra back as a refund when you file your taxes. If you put a number that’s too high, you could end up owing when you file your taxes. If you can claim both children, you’d be OK with four or five allowances – you’d have 1 on line A, 2 on line D, 1 on line E and 2 on line G, for a total of six – I’d stay with 5 at most if you are expecting to take a second job since that can cause you to end up with too little taken out. But if you make under about $37,000 total for the year, you will probably be eligible for an earned income credit which could give you some extra money back.

I hope I haven’t confused you further.

All Dates for this Event:

ADULT COMPUTER TRAINING: Preregistration is being taken now for free computer training for adults the Minot Public Library will offer in March and in April. Classes are geared toward library information but will also include other information. Preregistration is required and class size is limited.

2009, 2010 child tax credit Information & Calculator

Question: can we claim sons girlfriends 2 kids who live with us for the child tax credit?

am filing joint with husband. We totally supported son, his girlfriend and their 1yr old baby , and also son’s girlfriends 2 boys from a previous marriage. We all lived together for 2009-my husband was the only employed in the house. irs said we can claim all 7 exemption, and our grandson qualifies for the child tax credit, but I don’t remember if they said that the other 2 boys qualified for the child tax credit. They did mention something about the additional child tax credit and said to fill out form 8812( I believe)
My sons girlfriend and her ex are not filing a return at all. They are not required to. Can we take the child tax credit for the boys too. Thank-you for your response.
Thank-you you guys for the great info.
everyone gave good answers, it was hard to choose best answer. I really felt that all the answers I recieved contributed to helping me figure this out.
so thanks.

Answer: Your son’s son can be claimed as grandchild, as per IRS he is entitled to EIC due to the relationship,
Your son’s girlfriend son, can be claimed as dependent if you supported him most of the year, but will not give you the EIC
Your son’s girl friend can be claimed as dependents too. I am sure she can not give any credit.
But having more numbers of exemptions in your return will reduce your taxable income, thus make your tax better. Non relatives will not give you EIC nor additional child tax credit.

A qualifying child is a child who is your…

Son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister,
stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them
(for example, your grandchild, niece, or nephew)

Help available for tax preparation

It’s tax season again, and between family, work and crazy schedules, it might be difficult to get them done on your own this year. But getting assistance from an accountant can often be too costly. Fortunately, local residents can get free help with tax preparation.

Question: how long will it take to get child tax credits? im in UK?

im already getting child benefit. my baby is now 7 weeks old and i sent the form for child tax credits just over 4 weeks ago. anyone know how long it takes to get your 1st payment and will it be backdated from the day my daughter was born??? thank you in advance!

Answer: It will be backdated to the day your daughter was born.

Mine took about 5 weeks to come through. I called them and they confirmed everything over the phone and told me when I was going to get a payment.
If I were you I would call them because the post has been messing about loads lately. By calling them to check on the status of the claim you won’t have to wait as long as you would if you wait for them to send out the info to you.

Jane I think teh “fudge

In reply to Gillard’s New Website Misses The Point : Jane I think teh “fudge formula” for school funding has become as complex as tax law! The rules of school probably take as many tonnes of paper, too. I wrote on my blog: “like investing, ‘past performance is no indicator of future returns’ and “Never confuse a test score with an education” John http://truepolitik.blogspot.com …

EEP100 – Lecture 17

Question: childcare- help with costs etc (uk)?

i have my son who is 3 and im returning to full time work in september. i have been looking at suitable day nurseries for him, my daughter is in a primary school.

we are eligible for help financially as we get tax credits and child tax credits. will all day nurseries except this? private nurseries etc?

Answer: Children aged 3 and above are entitled to free nursery places, but this doesn’t apply entirely to private nurseries, as the cost allocated to local authority nurseries is less. So what you pay for the private nursery may well be more than you local authority calculates the equivalent at a state nursery.

But the private nursery will get a rebate on your child’s costs, as long as they are partnered with the local authority, up to what the authority sets as the standard cost. Most private nurseries are partnered with their local authority, otherwise, you’re likely to go elsewhere. So you should get a discount – in my area its equivalent to £650 per quarter.

Its also worth checking if your new employer is part of the nursery voucher scheme. This is one of Gordon Brown’s “family friendly” tax breaks. You pay for vouchers that are used towards your nursery fees, and you get Tax an NI relief, up to about£86 per month. I pay £157 per month out of my salary and get £243 of vouchers towards childcare. This is a benefit for each person as a taxpayer, separate from the child’s entitlement, and can be used for childcare costs up to the age of 16.

Farley Report: Brewer’s Budget “An Unmitigated Disaster That Will Worsen Our Unprecedented Crisis”

The latest legislative summary from state Rep. Steve Farley: The Capitol is emptying out a bit this week: Three Republican Senators have already announced their intention to resign and run for Congress — Paton against Giffords, and Waring & Gorman for the vacant seat left by Shadegg’s retirement. Perhaps they were not looking forward to spending the rest of the session dealing with budget issues …

Susan Kramer: Your views on childcare

Question: I receive help as work 16 hrs a week and get tax credits can I buy a property with an inheritance?

I have been receiving help with housing etc. and now I have an inheritance which will be just enough to buy a small property for myself and two children. Will I still be able to claim my tax credits keeping the same job

Answer: The DWP website states entitlement to Tax Credits is based on household income in any one year. If this is less that £58,000 you qualify for something.

An inheritance would not be regarded as income, it is not subject to income tax but may be subject to inheritance tax if it exceeds the current limit. The DWP website also says it counts interest earned on savings as income but not the actual savings. Theoretically then, if you invested this money, even by way of buying a property, the actual capital amount should not be considered when evaluating your claim.

I hope this is the case because you should not be penalised for receiving a financial boost that enables you to provide a secure roof over your and your kids head! The best thing would be to make a general enquiry to Tax Credits, even getting someone else to do it for you if you prefer.

Analysis: Mo. tax cut ideas flourish

An AP News Analysis

Dr. Rand Paul on King World News | Part 2/3