There’s an enhanced child tax credit for the 2025 tax year, and several changes enacted by the Trump administration will impact which families receive it.
President Trump signed the GOP's “One Big, Beautiful Bill” (OBBB) into law on the Fourth of July. The measure includes major changes to the tax code, including an increased federal child tax credit (CTC).
For the 2025 tax year, returns families typically file in early 2026, the total tax CTC amount increases from $2,000 to $2,200, indexed to inflation. New rules within Trump's tax and spending cuts legislation may also affect some immigrant households' eligibility for this credit.
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The child tax credit is based on income, filing status, the number of children, and whether the IRS considers your dependent a qualifying child.
Here is what you need to know about newly enhanced changes to the federal child tax credit.
Overview
What is the child tax credit?
The federal child tax credit is a key tax break that provides qualifying households up to $2,200 per child under 17.
While your eligibility depends on your income, child's age, and other factors — you may be able to claim this benefit even if you aren't required to file a tax return.
- As a partially refundable tax credit, if the CTC exceeds taxes owed, families may receive up to $1,700 per child as a refund for the 2025 tax year. This portion is called the Additional Child Tax Credit.
- Taxpayers may qualify for the full amount for each child if they earn $200,000 as an individual filer or $400,000 for joint filers. The credit phases out completely for incomes above that threshold.
The child tax credit has reportedly supported as many as 40 million U.S. families each year. This figure may be impacted due to new Social Security Number (SSN) requirements implemented by Trump’s new tax policy legislation. (More on that below.).
Child Tax Credit 2025
How much is the child tax credit for 2025?
The refundable portion of the CTC is $1,700 for the 2025 tax year (returns you'll file in early 2026). This amount is also indexed to inflation, meaning that it may increase slightly annually.
That means the 2025 child tax credit amount remains unchanged from the previous year, 2024.
For more information on IRS-adjusted amounts for key family tax credits see: New 2025 Child Tax Credit Announced: How Much Is It?
Additional CTC
The Additional Child Tax Credit for 2025
Your child tax credit can lower your tax liability this year by $2,200 per qualifying child. However, this tax credit isn’t refundable. That means if you owe less than $2,200 in taxes, you won’t get the unused portion of the credit as a refund.
However, the additional child tax credit (ACTC) allows you to receive up to a maximum of $1,700 per child as a refund this tax season. You can receive the maximum amount of the ACTC after your tax bill is reduced to zero.
If you want to find out your CTC amount before you file, you can calculate this using the IRS' Interactive Tax Assistant tool online.
How to Qualify for the CTC
Qualifying for the child tax credit
Not everyone will qualify for the child tax credit, and your income isn’t the only determining factor. The Trump administration just tightened eligibility requirements; now, parents and children must have a Social Security Number (SSN) to qualify for the credit in 2025. Read on for more information.
The following must apply for your household to qualify for the CTC:
Age: The child must be under age 17 at the end of the year.
Relationship: The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, or a descendant of one of these (for example, a grandchild).
Financial Support: Children cannot provide more than half of their financial support during the year.
Residency: Children claimed under the CTC must live with you for over half a year.
Dependent Status: The child must be claimed as a dependent on your tax return.
Citizenship: The child must have been a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or U.S. resident alien during the tax year. For the first time, single parents who don’t have a Social Security number do not qualify. That means, if a parent does not have a SSN but a child does, that child does not qualify for the child tax credit.
Income: Parents or guardians can't exceed certain income limits. The credit amount is reduced depending on income until it phases out completely.
Child tax credit eligibility continued
As mentioned, the child tax credit amount you can expect on your refund will depend on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI).
Once your income reaches a certain limit, the credit amount will decrease or completely phase out.
The credit amount will be reduced by $50 for every $1,000 above your income cap.
For instance, your child tax credit will begin to phase out once your MAGI exceeds:
- $200,000 for a single filer, head of household, or qualifying widower.
- $400,000 for those married filing jointly.
- $200,000 for those married, filing separately.
Child tax credit for non-filers:
Just as the CTC has a phase-out threshold, it also has a phase-in amount.
To qualify for the credit, families must earn at least $2,500 per year, and the CTC then phases in a rate of 15% per dollar earnings over that amount. Additionally, if you have three or more qualifying children, you may be eligible for other tax breaks like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).
How to Claim the Child Tax Credit
Claiming your child tax credit
You can claim the child tax credit by entering your children or dependents on your federal income tax return (Form 1040). You’ll attach a completed Schedule 8812 (Credits for Qualifying Children and Other Dependents).
That IRS form will also help you determine how much of the CTC you’re eligible for and if you will receive additional tax credits. (Note: If you use tax software, the system will walk you through this with prompts. If you use a tax preparer, they will handle this for you.)
Child Tax Credit Update
What is Trump’s increased Child Tax Credit for 2025?
President Donald Trump signed the so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ into law on July 4, which enacted trillions of tax cuts that mainly benefit the wealthy.
Within the measure, Republican lawmakers made provisions of Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) permanent, and an enhanced federal Child Tax Credit.
The final version increases the Child Tax Credit to $2,200 starting in 2025. This amount would be indexed to inflation starting next year.
Additionally, the OBBB requires applicants to have a Social Security Number (SSN) to qualify for the CTC. As mentioned, this means that both parent and child must have a SSN to qualify for the tax break.
Finally, the maximum refundable portion of the credit is $1,700 for 2025 (indexed to inflation).
To learn more about how this new version of the Child Tax Credit can impact households across the country, read: Here’s How the Child Tax Credit 2025 Amount Cound Increase Under Trump.
Also, see what state child tax credits and deductions are available to help you and your family save money.
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