Wisconsin families have until Nov. 15 to use online tool to electronically file for child tax credit
Time is winding down to use the government’s simplified online tool to electronically file for the 2021 expanded Child Tax Credit.
The government will sunset the nonfiler sign-up tool GetCTC (www.getctc.org/en) on Nov. 15. Families have until then to use the online tool to file for the tax credit. Parents can receive $3,000 per child for households with children ages 6 to 17, and $3,600 for children 5 and under.
The child tax credit was expanded under President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act. The relief package increased the amount of money parents can receive, which was previously capped at $2,000 per child.
The mobile-friendly tool was created by Code for America, in partnership with the White House and the U.S. Treasury and is in English and Spanish. The tool gives families a fast and easy way to claim the tax credit, which can be done in 15 minutes online. The tool can also be used to file for any missing stimulus payments.
The child tax credit is also available to low-income individuals who don’t normally file federal tax returns and could be missing out on these funds. Claiming the tax credit does not affect eligibility for other federal benefits like SNAP and WIC.
The administration advanced half the payments to help parents weather the financial uncertainty of the pandemic. Parents received $300 for children 5 and under and $250 for older children from July through December of 2021. Parents got the remainder when they filed their 2021 tax returns.
More than 1 million Wisconsin children were eligible for the Child Tax Credit receiving a total of $1.6 billion for that 6-month period. The funds were used to cover basic needs such as food, child care and housing expenses including rent, mortgages and utilities.
Advocates say the tax credit greatly reduced childhood poverty. Childhood poverty fell from 9.7% in 2020 to 5.2% in 2021, the lowest rate on record, according to an Economic Policy Institute report. The expanded tax credit prevented 2.1 million children from slipping into poverty nationwide.
The report found 600,000 fewer Black children were in poverty in 2021 because of the Child Tax Credit. Hispanic childhood poverty saw dramatic reductions with 752,000 children lifted out of poverty from the tax credit.
Efforts to extend the expanded tax credit beyond 2021 were scuttled by U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin who let Biden’s Build Back Better bill die in the Senate. The child tax credit reverts to its $2,000 per child limit for individuals filing in 2023.
In addition, the IRS Free File program remains open until Nov. 17 for those who still need to file their 2021 tax returns. This includes those who qualify for the Child Tax Credit, Recovery Rebate Credit or Earned Income Tax Credit but haven't yet filed a 2021 tax return to claim them.
IRS Free File is a public-private partnership between the IRS and tax preparation software industry leaders who provide their brand-name products for free. There are eight Free File products available in English and two in Spanish.
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La Risa Lynch is a community affairs reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Email her at llynch@gannett.com
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Federal online tool to electronically file for child tax credit ends Nov. 15
