Good news for 2025: the Child Tax Credit (CTC) is changing in a big way that will require families to act sooner than planned. This change should give you some much-needed relief, but it also means you will have to claim the credit earlier than planned.
The government program called the Child Tax Credit (CTC) helps families who qualify by giving them money. This makes raising a child less expensive.
How to qualify for the 2025 CTC
To qualify for the CTC in 2025, taxpayers must meet specific requirements:
- Age: The child must be under 17 at the end of the tax year.
- Relationship: The child must be a son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, sibling, stepsibling, or a descendant of any of these (e.g., grandchild, niece, or nephew).
- Dependent Status: The child must be claimed as a dependent on your tax return.
- Residency: The child must have lived with you for more than half of the tax year, with certain exceptions.
- Support: You must have provided more than half of the child’s financial support during the year.
- Citizenship: The child must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or U.S. resident alien, and possess a valid Social Security number.
- Income: The credit begins to phase out at a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) above $400,000 for married couples filing jointly and $200,000 for other filers.
Key dates to claim for the 2025 tax year
Keep in mind that the due date for getting your tax credit payment for the 2023 fiscal year has already passed. The following dates are the last days to file a CTC claim for the year 2025; the money will not be paid out until 2026:
- Submit Your Tax Return: File your federal tax return (Form 1040) for the 2025 tax year by the deadline of April 15, 2026.
- Fill Out Schedule 8812: Complete and attach Schedule 8812, “Credits for Qualifying Children and Other Dependents,” to determine the amount of your credit and any refundable portion.
- Earliest Tax Filing Date: January 1, 2026
The earliest refund for the tax year 2025 is likely to come in the middle of February 2026. You can expect to get your refund within 21 days if you file by the due date.
The CTC acts as a lifeline for many families
The CTC and other government aid programs are very important for helping families, especially those with low incomes, by giving them money when things get tough.
These programs help reduce poverty and give families the money they need to take care of basic needs like food, shelter, and schooling. For example, the Child Tax Credit (CTC) helps working parents a lot so they can better care for their kids and make ends meet.
Support from the government is very important when the economy is unstable because it helps keep people’s finances stable, increases consumer spending, and boosts the economy as a whole.
The rising costs of housing, health care, and other necessities would make it hard for many families to pay their bills without these programs.
Because of this, the CTC and other similar programs are not only important for the health of individual families, they are also essential for making the economy more fair and stable.
Raising kids these days costs a lot of money, especially when you consider how expensive it is to live. Families are having to pay more for everything, from housing and health care to food and school.
The rising cost of housing is a big problem because more parents are having to spend more of their income on rent or mortgage, leaving less for child-related costs.
These money problems make it harder for many families to save for the future, put money into their kids’ education, or give them the chances they want to give them.
Low- and middle-income families are having a hard time with money, which makes it harder to provide a safe and comfortable place for kids to grow up.
Because of the way the economy is right now, government aid programs like the CTC are very important for helping parents pay their bills and make sure their kids are healthy.
