All your questions on the expanded child tax credit, from who qualifies to how much you’ll receive.
President Joe Biden announced Monday that families will gain access to enhanced child care benefits beginning July 15. The expanded child tax credit was passed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan in March, and similar to that bill’s stimulus checks, half of the enhanced benefits will be distributed to eligible parents as direct payments of up to $300 per month per child for six months (with the other half awarded in 2022). All told, Biden’s plan increases the annual child tax credit from $2,000 to $3,600 for kids under 6 and from $2,000 to $3,000 for kids between the ages of 6 and 17. Families have the option to accept the credit in monthly chunks — and it will be entirely refundable, meaning families won’t have to pay it back. The vast majority of children — about 88 percent, according to the IRS — will be covered by the enhanced benefits, and by some estimates, the $110 billion program, currently set to expire after one year, is expected to cut child poverty in half. There are some efforts to extend the benefit, including a plan from Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), but currently, there is little indication those proposals could become law. Biden is looking to fund an extension through 2025 in his American Families Plan, a $180 trillion social infrastructure proposal currently making its way through Congress. All told, the households of more than 65 million American children can expect to receive some of that $110 billion. Here’s what you need to know about whether you’re eligible, and when to expect to see money.
