Question 1

What changed for the Child Tax Credit under OBBBA?

Accepted Answer

Starting with tax year 2025, you (or your spouse, if you're married filing jointly) must have a Social Security number that's valid for employment to claim the CTC or the refundable ACTC at all — an ITIN no longer qualifies the filer. Previously, only the qualifying child needed an SSN; the filer-side requirement is new. If you're married filing jointly, only one spouse needs the valid SSN — the other can have an SSN or an ITIN. Miss this and the credit is $0 regardless of income, children, or anything else, which is why this calculator models it as a hard toggle rather than a footnote.

Question 2

How does the income phase-out work, and why does it never move?

Accepted Answer

Your credit is reduced $50 for every $1,000 (or fraction of $1,000 — even $1 over costs the full $50) that your modified AGI exceeds the threshold for your filing status: $200,000 for single and head of household, $400,000 for married filing jointly. Unlike nearly every other dollar figure this site tracks — brackets, deduction amounts, contribution limits — these two thresholds are NOT adjusted for inflation. They were set by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act at exactly these numbers and have stayed there since, through 2026 and beyond under current law. That means the phase-out quietly bites more families every year as wages rise with inflation but the threshold doesn't move.

Question 3

What is the ACTC, and how is the 15% formula actually calculated?

Accepted Answer

The Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) is the refundable slice of the CTC — up to $1,700 per qualifying child for 2026, paid out even if you owe $0 in federal tax. It's computed as 15% of your earned income above a $2,500 floor, then capped at the smaller of that result, $1,700 × your qualifying children, and your total allowed credit after phase-out. Concretely: $20,000 of earned income gives 15% × ($20,000 − $2,500) = $2,625 — enough to hit the full $1,700/child cap for one child, but the formula (not just the flat cap) is what actually limits lower-earned-income families, which is why this calculator computes the real percentage rather than a simplified yes/no threshold.

Question 4

My child only has an ITIN, not an SSN — do they still qualify?

Accepted Answer

No, not for the CTC or the ACTC. Each qualifying child needs their own Social Security number that's valid for employment, issued by the SSA on or before your return's due date — an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) doesn't satisfy this requirement, and never has for the CTC's SSN rule. A child with only an ITIN doesn't disqualify your OTHER children with valid SSNs; they're simply excluded from the count this calculator uses, one child at a time. That child may still qualify you for the smaller, fully nonrefundable Credit for Other Dependents ($500, not modeled in this tool), which does accept an ITIN.

Question 5

What if my income is too low to owe any federal tax — do I get nothing?

Accepted Answer

No — this is exactly what the refundable ACTC exists for. If your tax liability is $0, the nonrefundable portion of the CTC can't help you (there's no tax to offset), but the refundable ACTC is paid out regardless, up to 15% of your earned income above $2,500, capped at $1,700 per qualifying child. A family with $20,000 in earned income and one qualifying child, for example, can still receive $1,700 as an actual refund even with zero tax owed. The only way earned income truly zeroes out the refundable portion is if it's at or below the $2,500 floor.

Question 6

What makes a child a "qualifying child" for the CTC in the first place?

Accepted Answer

This calculator assumes every child you enter already passes the underlying qualifying-child test and focuses on the SSN and income mechanics instead — but the full test (Schedule 8812) requires: under age 17 at the end of the year; your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, sibling, step-sibling, or a descendant of any of them; didn't provide more than half of their own support; lived with you for more than half the year (with exceptions for temporary absences); is claimed as your dependent; and isn't filing a joint return for the year (unless only to claim a refund). Age is the one most families trip on — a child who turns 17 at any point during the tax year no longer qualifies for the CTC for that year, even if they were 16 for most of it.

Up to $2,200 per child,
$1,700 of it refundable.

How the 2026 Child Tax Credit actually computes.

The SSN gate, new for 2025+

The MAGI phase-out — and the one figure that never moves

The refundable ACTC: a real percentage, not a threshold

Zero tax owed doesn't mean zero credit

Scope

Disclaimer