Today is Child Tax Credit Awareness Day, and President Joe Biden has made an announcement sure to improve the summers of many American families: Child tax credits of up to $300 per kid will start hitting parents’ bank accounts and mailboxes starting on July 15. Those payments will continue on the 15th of every month for the rest of 2021.
“Folks, this Child Tax Credit is a huge step towards a tax system that works for the middle class,” Biden tweeted from his official @potus account.
As part of the American Families Plan, the increase in the Child Tax Credit is designed to help low-income and middle-class parents. While the increase is only in place for 2021 so far, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are working to keep the increase in 2022 and beyond.
The Child Tax Credit has existed for many years, but it was capped at $2,000 yearly. Now, for children under age 6, the monthly credit is $300, or $3,600 a year. For children ages 6 to 17, the monthly credit is $250, or $3,000 a year. Because the payments will begin in July, the remaining Child Tax Credit for January through June can be claimed by parents on their 2021 federal income taxes. All working families will get the full credit if they make up to $150,000 for a couple filing jointly or $112,500 for a family with a single parent.
Vice President Harris is in Pennsylvania today to spread awareness about the Child Tax Credit, and the VP also took to Instagram to share a message about how the credits will work.
“For the first time ever, families will get the Child Tax Credit every month instead of at the end of the year,” Harris said in the Instagram post. “And that’s for a simple reason: We know you’ve got bills to pay, every month.”
A post shared by Vice President Kamala Harris (@vp)
Vice President Harris also explained what families need to do to get the credit:
“If you filed taxes in 2019 or 2020, you don’t have to do anything,” Harris said. “You will get the Child Tax Credit automatically. If you did not file taxes in 2019 or 2020, then visit ChildTaxCredit.gov to get the information you need to sign up.
“We want every family who qualifies for the Child Tax Credit to receive it, because you deserve it,” Harris concluded. “And because it will help us lift — as a nation — half of children who are living in poverty out of poverty.”
Before you go, check out our gallery of celebrity parents who talk to their kids about racism.
Source: Read Full Article