This is what the calculation gives for the numbers you entered. It is an estimate, not advice, and it knows nothing about your situation beyond those numbers. Rules for United States change on a published schedule; the effective date is shown on every rule-based tool.
How this is calculated
The credit is a flat amount per qualifying child plus a smaller amount per other dependent. Above the income threshold it falls by fifty dollars for each thousand or part thousand, which means the reduction steps rather than sliding: earning one dollar past a thousand boundary costs the full fifty. Part of the credit is refundable, so it can produce a refund beyond your tax liability, unlike a purely non-refundable credit.
Worked examples
Each of these is asserted on every build. If a change to the engine ever moved one of these answers, the build would fail before the page could print it.
two children with income above the threshold
- Children under 17
- 2
- Other dependents
- 0
- Adjusted gross income
- $210,000.00
- Credit per qualifying child
- $2,000.00
- Credit per other dependent
- $500.00
- Phase-out begins at
- $200,000.00
- Refundable portion per child
- $1,700.00
- Tax liability before credits
- $24,000.00
Total credit$3,500.00
10 steps of 50 dollars
Open this exampleincome below the threshold gets the full credit
- Children under 17
- 2
- Other dependents
- 0
- Adjusted gross income
- $150,000.00
- Credit per qualifying child
- $2,000.00
- Credit per other dependent
- $500.00
- Phase-out begins at
- $200,000.00
- Refundable portion per child
- $1,700.00
- Tax liability before credits
- $24,000.00
Total credit$4,000.00
boundary
Open this exampleno children means no credit
- Children under 17
- 0
- Other dependents
- 0
- Adjusted gross income
- $210,000.00
- Credit per qualifying child
- $2,000.00
- Credit per other dependent
- $500.00
- Phase-out begins at
- $200,000.00
- Refundable portion per child
- $1,700.00
- Tax liability before credits
- $24,000.00
Total credit$0.00
degenerate case
Open this exampleMethod and limits
What it assumes
- All children meet the qualifying child tests, which include age, residency and support.
What it deliberately does not model
- Credit amounts and thresholds are set by statute and have changed repeatedly.
- The refundable portion is subject to an earned income test not modelled here.
- Filing status changes the threshold.
Formula version 1.0.0 · definition 1.0.0 · United States · Report a problem with this calculator
Frequently asked questions
- Why does a small raise cost me fifty dollars of credit?
- Because the reduction steps per thousand of income and rounds up. Crossing a thousand boundary by any amount triggers the whole fifty dollar step.
- What does refundable mean?
- That part of the credit can be paid to you even if it exceeds your tax liability. A non-refundable credit can only reduce tax to zero.