The Internal Revenue Service announced that the nation’s 2025 tax season will start on Monday, Jan. 27, 2025. The federal deadline to file 2024 taxes will be Tuesday, April 15, 2025.

From the IRS website: “Most refunds are issued in less than 21 calendar days. Taxpayers can use Where’s My Refund? to check the status of their 2024 income tax refund within 24 hours of e-filing. Refund information is normally available after four weeks for taxpayers who filed a paper return. Information on Where’s My Refund? will update overnight so there is no need to check the tool more than once a day. The easiest, safest and fastest way to receive a refund is to file electronically (e-file) and select direct deposit. According to Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service, paper refund checks are 16 times more likely to have an issue, like the check being lost, misdirected, stolen or uncashed.”

IR-2024-312, Dec. 19, 2024

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced that the optional standard mileage rate for automobiles driven for business will increase by 3 cents in 2025, while the mileage rates for vehicles used for other purposes will remain unchanged from 2024.

Optional standard milage rates are used to calculate the deductible costs of operating vehicles for business, charitable and medical purposes, as well as for active-duty members of the Armed Forces who are moving.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2025, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck will be:

• 70 cents per mile driven for business use, up 3 cents from 2024.
• 21 cents per mile driven for medical purposes, the same as in 2024.
• 21 cents per mile driven for moving purposes for qualified active-duty members of the Armed Forces, unchanged from last year.
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations, equal to the rate in 2024.

The rates apply to fully-electric and hybrid automobiles, as well as gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

While the mileage rate for charitable use is set by statute, the mileage rate for business use is based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. The rate for medical and moving purposes, meanwhile, is based on only the variable costs from the annual study.

Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, taxpayers cannot claim a miscellaneous itemized deduction for unreimbursed employee travel expenses. And only taxpayers who are members of the military on active duty may claim a deduction for moving expenses incurred while relocating under orders to a permanent change of station.

Use of the standard mileage rates is optional. Taxpayers may instead choose to calculate the actual costs of using their vehicle.

Taxpayers using the standard mileage rate for a vehicle they own and use for business must choose to use the rate in the first year the automobile is available for business use. Then, in later years, they can choose to use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses.

For a leased vehicle, taxpayers using the standard mileage rate must employ that method for the entire lease period, including renewals.

Notice 2025-5 PDF contains the optional 2025 standard mileage rates, as well as the maximum automobile cost used to calculate mileage reimbursement allowances under a fixed-and variable rate (FAVR) plan. The notice also provides the maximum fair market value of employer-provided automobiles first made available to employees for personal use in 2025 for which employers may calculate mileage allowances using a cents-per-mile valuation rule or the fleet-average-valuation rule.

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-increases-the-standard-mileage-rate-for-business-use-in-2025-key-rate-increases-3-cents-to-70-cents-per-mile

IR-2024-279, Oct. 23, 2024

WASHINGTON — Now that the Oct. 15 extension deadline has come and gone, the Internal Revenue Service today reminded disaster-area taxpayers who received extensions to file their 2023 returns that, depending upon their location, their returns are due on Nov. 1, 2024, Feb. 3, 2025, or May 1, 2025.

Currently:

• Taxpayers in parts of Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia have until Nov. 1, 2024, to file their 2023 returns.
• Taxpayers in the entire states of Louisiana and Vermont, all of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and parts of Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas and Washington state have until Feb. 3, 2025, to file their 2023 returns.
• Taxpayers in the entire states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, and parts of Tennessee and Virginia will have until May 1, 2025, to file their 2023 returns. For these taxpayers, May 1 will also be the deadline for filing their 2024 returns and paying any tax due.

Eligible taxpayers are individuals and businesses affected by various disasters that occurred during the late spring, summer and early fall of this year. For extension filers, payments on the 2023 tax year returns are not eligible for the additional time because they were originally due last spring before any of these disasters occurred.

The IRS normally provides relief, including postponing various tax filing and payment deadlines, for any area designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). As long as their address of record is in a disaster-area locality, individual and business taxpayers automatically get the extra time, without having to ask for it. The current list of eligible localities is always available on the disaster relief page on IRS.gov.

In addition, the IRS will work with any taxpayer who lives outside the disaster area but whose records necessary to meet a deadline occurring during the postponement period are located in the affected area. Taxpayers qualifying for relief who live outside the disaster should contact the IRS at 866-562-5227. This also includes workers who assisted with relief activities who are affiliated with a recognized government or philanthropic organization.

Special relief for terrorist attacks in Israel

Taxpayers who live or have a business in Israel, Gaza or the West Bank, and certain other taxpayers affected by the terrorist attacks in the State of Israel have until Sept. 30, 2025, to file and pay. This includes all 2023 and 2024 returns. 

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-reminder-to-disaster-area-taxpayers-with-extensions-parts-of-8-states-need-to-file-2023-returns-by-nov-1-others-have-until-feb-3-or-may-1

IR-2024-04, Jan. 8, 2024

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced Monday, Jan. 29, 2024, as the official start date of the nation’s 2024 tax season when the agency will begin accepting and processing 2023 tax returns.

The IRS expects more than 128.7 million individual tax returns to be filed by the April 15, 2024, tax deadline.

Although the IRS will not officially begin accepting and processing tax returns until Jan. 29, people do not need to wait until then to work on their taxes if they’re using software companies or tax professionals. For example, most software companies accept electronic submissions and then hold them until the IRS is ready to begin processing later this month. IRS Free File will also be available on IRS.gov starting Jan. 12 in advance of the filing season opening. The IRS Direct File pilot will be rolled out in phases as final testing is completed and is expected to be widely available in mid-March to eligible taxpayers in the participating states.

Taxpayers will continue to see helpful changes at the IRS following ongoing transformation work. Building off the success of the 2023 tax season that saw significant improvements following passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the 2024 filing season will continue reflecting the focus on improving services to taxpayers.

“As our transformation efforts take hold, taxpayers will continue to see marked improvement in IRS operations in the upcoming filing season,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. “IRS employees are working hard to make sure that new funding is used to help taxpayers by making the process of preparing and filing taxes easier.”

Some of the new and expanded tools and resources include:

• Expanded in-person service that meets taxpayers where they are by opening or reopening Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs). The IRS will also offer extended hours at many TACs nationwide.
• Increased help available on the toll-free line and an expanded customer call back feature designed to significantly reduce wait times.
• Improvements to the Where’s My Refund? tool, which is the IRS’ most widely used taxpayer service tool. However, the tool provides limited information, often leading taxpayers to call the IRS to inquire about their refund status. Updates to Where’s My Refund? will allow taxpayers to see more detailed refund status messages in plain language. These updates will also ensure Where’s My Refund works seamlessly on mobile devices. Taxpayers often see a generic message stating that their returns are still being processed and to check back later. With the improvements, taxpayers will see clearer and more detailed updates, including whether the IRS needs them to respond to a letter requesting additional information. The new updates will reduce the need for taxpayers to call the IRS for answers to basic questions. 
• Enhanced paperless processing that will enable taxpayers to submit all correspondence, non-tax forms, and responses to notices digitally and will be able to e-File 20 additional tax forms. Achieving this milestone will enable up to 125 million paper documents to be submitted digitally per year.
• An enhanced IRS Individual Online Account that includes chat, the option to schedule and cancel future payments, revise payment plans and validate and save bank accounts.
• A new, pilot tax filing service called Direct File that gives eligible taxpayers a new choice to file their 2023 federal tax returns online, for free, directly with the IRS. It will be rolled out in phases and is expected to be widely available in mid-March. Find more about Direct File pilot eligibility, scope and the participating states on Direct File.

April 15 tax filing deadline for most taxpayers

For most taxpayers, the deadline to file their personal federal tax return, pay any tax owed or request an extension to file is Monday, April 15, 2024.

Taxpayers living in Maine or Massachusetts have until April 17, 2024, due to the Patriot’s Day and Emancipation Day holidays. If a taxpayer resides in a federally declared disaster area, they also may have additional time to file.

Tips to help people file in 2024

The IRS encourages taxpayers to take steps now to Get Ready to file their 2023 individual federal tax return. It’s important for filers to gather all the correct information they need before filing their return. Organize and gather tax records including Social Security numbers, Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, Adoption Identification Numbers and this year’s Identity Protection Personal Identification Numbers (IP PIN). Filing an accurate return can help taxpayers avoid refund delays or later IRS mailings about a problem.

People should report all their taxable income and wait to file until they receive all income related documents. This is especially important for people who may receive various Forms 1099 from banks or other payers reporting unemployment compensation, dividends, pensions, annuities or retirement plan distributions. If a taxpayer receives Forms 1099-K, they should visit What to do with Form 1099-K to help them determine if that money should be reported as income on their federal tax return.

People should plan to file electronically with direct deposit. This is still the fastest and easiest way to file and receive a refund. To avoid delays in processing, people should avoid filing paper returns whenever possible.

IRS Free File; opens January 12; free service on IRS.gov has helped millions

IRS Free File will open Jan. 12, 2024, when participating software companies will accept completed tax returns and hold them until they can be filed electronically with the IRS. IRS Free File Guided Tax Software, available only at IRS.gov, is available to any taxpayer or family with Adjusted Gross Income of $79,000 or less in 2023.

Beginning Jan. 29, 2024, Free File Fillable forms, a part of this effort, is available at no cost to any income level and provides electronic forms that people can fill out and e-file themselves also at no cost.

Most refunds issued in less than 21 days; EITC refunds for many available starting February 27

Many different factors can affect the timing of a refund after the IRS receives a return. Although the IRS issues most refunds in less than 21 days, the IRS cautions taxpayers not to rely on receiving a refund by a certain date, especially when making major purchases or paying bills. Some returns may require additional review and may take longer. The easiest way to check a refund’s status is by using Where’s My Refund? on IRS.gov or the IRS2Go app.

Under the federal Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act, the IRS cannot issue Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) refunds before mid-February. Where’s My Refund? should show an updated status by February 17 for most early EITC/ACTC filers. The IRS expects most EITC/ACTC related refunds to be available in taxpayer bank accounts or on debit cards by February 27 if they chose direct deposit and there are no other issues with their tax return.

IRS.gov, IRS Online Account provide free help

Visit IRS.gov to find online tools to help get information needed to file a complete and accurate return. The tools are easy-to-use and available anytime. Check out a few resources below:

• IRS Individual Online Account: Individuals with a Social Security number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification number can log-in or sign-up for an IRS Individual Online Account to securely access information about their federal tax account, view balance and payment options, view and approve authorizations from their tax professional, view digital copies of select IRS notices and get information on their most recently filed return that includes their Adjusted Gross Income.
• Interactive Tax Assistant: The Interactive Tax Assistant (ITA) is a tool that provides answers to several tax law questions specific to individual circumstances. Based on input, it can determine if a person should file a tax return, their filing status, if someone can be claimed as a dependent, if a type of income is taxable, if a filer is eligible to claim a credit or if an expense can be deducted.
• Choosing a tax pro: People can use the IRS Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications to find a preparer who is skilled in tax preparation and accurately files income tax returns. Most tax return preparers provide outstanding and professional tax service. However, choosing the wrong tax return preparer hurts taxpayers financially every year. Be sure to check tips for choosing a tax preparer and how to avoid unethical “ghost” return preparers.
• Free tax help by IRS certified volunteers: Through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs, volunteers are available in communities nationwide to provide free tax assistance to low-to-moderate income (generally under $64,000 in adjusted gross income) and elderly taxpayers (age 60 and older). At selected sites, taxpayers can input and electronically fi­le their own tax return with the assistance of an IRS certified volunteer. For additional information, visit Free Tax Return Preparation for Qualifying Taxpayers.
• Help for the military: A Department of Defense program, MilTax generally offers free return preparation and electronic filing software for federal income tax returns and up to three state income tax returns for all military members, and some veterans, with no income limit.

Key 2024 filing season dates

• January 12: IRS Free File opens.
• January 16: Due date for 2023 fourth quarter estimated tax payments.
• January 26: Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day.
• January 29: Filing season start date for individual tax returns.
• April 15: Due date of filing a tax return or to request an extension for most of the nation.
• April 17: Due date for Maine and Massachusetts.
• October 15: Due date for extension filers.

From: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/2024-tax-filing-season-set-for-january-29-irs-continues-to-make-improvements-to-help-taxpayers

Snyder Tax Service is currently seeking candidates to fill the position of Tax Processor.

Primary responsibilities include digitally storing client records, verifying data accuracy, and presenting finalized documentation for client consumption.  Preferred candidates should have strong attention to detail, efficiency, and basic computer skills.  Excellent customer service and confidentiality skills are a MUST.  No previous income tax preparation experience required.

Position will be scheduled mid-January through May.  Monday – Friday 8:00 am until 4:00 pm or 9:00 am until 5:00 pm with some flexibility available.  Saturdays not required but may be available occasionally.

Please send a resume detailing employment history and skill set to Amanda.SnyderTax@gmail.com or

Snyder Tax Service

Attn: Amanda Novak

213 Miner Ave W Ladysmith, WI 54848

by December 27, 2023

Beginning January 30th our office hours will be:

Monday – Friday

8:00AM – 5:00PM

Additional appointment times available by request.

We will begin Saturday hours on February 18th.

Saturday:

10:00AM – 3:00PM

The 2023 tax season (for 2022 returns) officially opens January 23, 2023. Please remember that the deadline for items like W2s and 1099s to be mailed is January 31st; thus, you may not have all your documentation until mid-February. We are currently scheduling future appointments if you’d like to secure your date/time. Please call 715.532.3100 to schedule.

IR-2021-177, September 7, 2021

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service reminds people that September 15, 2021, is the deadline for third quarter estimated tax payments. This generally applies to people who are self-employed and some investors, retirees and those who may not normally have taxes withheld from their paycheck by their employers.

The U.S. tax system operates on a pay-as-you-go basis. This means taxpayers are to pay most of their tax during the year, as they earn or receive income. Therefore, individuals not subject to withholding may need to make quarterly estimated tax payments.

Who should pay quarterly?

In most cases, taxpayers should make quarterly estimated tax payments for 2021 if both of the following apply:

• Individuals expect to owe at least $1,000 in tax for 2021 after subtracting their withholding and tax credits.
• They expect their withholding and tax credits to be less than the smaller of:
  • 90% of the tax to be shown on their 2021 tax return or
  • 100% of the tax shown on their 2020 tax return. Their 2020 tax return must cover all 12 months.

Taxpayers with income not subject to withholding, including interest, dividends, capital gains, alimony, cryptocurrency and rental income, normally make estimated tax payments.

Special rules apply to some groups of taxpayers, such as farmers, fishermen, casualty and disaster victims, those who recently became disabled, recent retirees and those who receive income unevenly during the year. Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax, provides more information on estimated tax rules. The worksheet in Form 1040-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals, or Form 1120-W, Estimated Tax for Corporations, has details on who must pay estimated tax.

Penalty for underpayment

If a taxpayer underpaid their taxes, they may have to pay a penalty. This applies whether they paid through withholding or through estimated tax payments. A penalty may also apply for late estimated tax payments even if someone is due a refund when they file their tax return.

To see if they owe a penalty, taxpayers should use Form 2210. The IRS may waive the penalty if someone underpaid because of unusual circumstances and not willful neglect. Examples include:

• casualty, disaster or another unusual situation,
• an individual retired after reaching age 62 during a tax year when estimated tax payments applied and
• an individual became disabled during a tax year when estimated tax payments applied.

How to figure estimated tax

To figure estimated tax, an individual must figure their expected adjusted gross income (AGI), taxable income, taxes, deductions and credits for the year. When figuring 2021 estimated tax, it may be helpful to use income, deductions and credits for 2020 as a starting point. Use the 2020 federal tax return as a guide. Taxpayers can use Form 1040-ES to figure their estimated tax. Nonresident aliens use Form 1040-ES (NR) to figure estimated tax.

Taxpayers must make adjustments both for changes in their own situation and for recent changes in the tax law. For instance, tax provisions in the American Rescue Plan of 2021 may impact an individual taxpayer’s situation. For more information, see Publication 505 under What’s New for 2021.

For information about these and other changes in the law, visit IRS.gov. The instructions for Form 1040-ES include a worksheet to help taxpayers figure their estimated tax. Keep the worksheet for records.

The Tax Withholding Estimator on IRS.gov offers taxpayers a clear, step-by-step method to have the right amount of tax withheld from wages and pensions.

On March 11, 2021 the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was passed.  This act excluded up to $10,200 per individual of unemployment compensation from taxation.  If your 2020 tax return contained unemployment compensation and was either filed before March 11, 2021 or did not include the exclusion calculation the American Rescue Plan Act allows, you may be entitled to a refund. 

The IRS has issued guidance stating that they will automatically correct tax returns by excluding up to $10,200 per individual of unemployment compensation and refunding any tax owed back to you.  This refund will be sent to you in the same form as any other refunds you may have been sent this year.  Thus, if you received a direct deposit refund, your unemployment compensation refund should also come as a direct deposit refund.  If you did not receive a refund for anything else, you may just receive a refund check via USPS.  Shortly after receiving your refunded money, you should receive a letter via USPS stating the purpose and explanation for your refund.

Since the IRS is only refunding taxes based solely on excluding unemployment compensation, your refund may not be accurate.  Thus, you can provide your refund explanation letter to us so we may review your return and ensure you are receiving the full refund you are entitled to.  If you qualify for an additional refund amount, we will assist you with amending your original return. 

The IRS has specifically asked that amendments not be filed for unemployment compensation exclusion until they have issued a corrected refund.  Thus, we will not be able to complete a review of your return for unemployment compensation reasons until we have seen your corrected refund explanation letter.  Once you receive your letter, please provide it to our office via drop-off, USPS, or email.  We will contact you once we have finished our review.

If you have any questions, please call our office Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday during the hours of 9:00am – 4:00pm.

IR-2021-143, June 30, 2021

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today upgraded a key online tool to enable families to quickly and easily update their bank account information so they can receive their monthly Child Tax Credit payment.

The bank account update feature was added to the Child Tax Credit Update Portal, available only on IRS.gov. Any updates made by August 2 will apply to the August 13 payment and all subsequent monthly payments for the rest of 2021.

Families will receive their July 15 payment by direct deposit in the bank account currently on file with the IRS. Those who are not enrolled for direct deposit will receive a check. The IRS encourages people without current bank account information to use the tool to update their information so they can get the payments sooner.

The IRS also urges people to be on the lookout for scams related to the Child Tax Credit. People who need to update their bank account information should go directly to the IRS.gov site and not click on links received by email, text or phone.

How to update direct deposit information

First, families should use the Child Tax Credit Update Portal to confirm their eligibility for the payments. If eligible, the tool will also indicate whether they are enrolled to receive their payments by direct deposit.

If so, it will list the full bank routing number and the last four digits of their account number. This is the account that will receive their July 15 payment, and if they don’t change the account, all future payments will go there as well.

Next, if they choose, they can change the bank account receiving the payment starting with the August 13 payment. They can do that by updating the routing number and account number and indicating whether it is a savings or checking account. Note that only one account number is permitted for each recipient—that is, the entire payment must be direct deposited in only one account.

How to switch from paper check to direct deposit

If the Update Portal shows that a family is eligible to receive payments but not enrolled to receive direct deposits, they will receive a check each month. If they want to switch to receiving their payments by direct deposit, they can use the tool to add their bank account information. They do that by entering their bank routing number and account number and indicating whether it is a savings or checking account.

The IRS urges any family receiving checks to consider switching to direct deposit. With direct deposit, families can access their money more quickly. Direct deposit removes the time, worry and expense of cashing a check. In addition, direct deposit eliminates the chance of a lost, stolen or undelivered check.

Families can stop payments anytime

Even after payments begin, families can stop all future monthly payments if they choose. They do that by using the unenroll feature in the Child Tax Credit Update Portal. Eligible families who make this choice will still receive the rest of their Child Tax Credit as a lump sum when they file their 2021 federal income tax return next year.

To stop all payments starting in August and the rest of 2021, they must unenroll by August 2, 2021.

For more information about the unenrollment process, including a schedule of deadlines for each monthly payment, see Topic J of the Child Tax Credit FAQs on IRS.gov.

Who should unenroll?

Instead of receiving these advance payments, some families may prefer to wait until the end of the year and receive the entire credit as a refund when they file their 2021 return. The Child Tax Credit Update Portal enables these families to quickly and easily do that.

The unenroll feature can also be helpful to any family that no longer qualifies for the Child Tax Credit or believes they will not qualify when they file their 2021 return. This could happen if, for example:

• Their income in 2021 is too high to qualify them for the credit.
• Someone else (an ex-spouse or another family member, for example) qualifies to claim their child or children as dependents in 2021.
• Their main home was outside of the United States for more than half of 2021.

What is the Child Tax Credit Update Portal?

The Child Tax Credit Update Portal is a secure, password-protected tool, available to any eligible family with internet access and a smart phone or computer. It is designed to enable them to manage their Child Tax Credit accounts. Right now, this includes updating their bank account information with the IRS or unenrolling from monthly payments. Soon, it will allow people to check on the status of their payments. Later this year, the tool will also enable them to make other status updates and be available in Spanish.

To access the Child Tax Credit Update Portal, a person must first verify their identity. If a person has an existing IRS username or an ID.me account with a verified identity, they can use those accounts to easily sign in. People without an existing account will be asked to verify their identity with a form of photo identification using ID.me, a trusted third party for the IRS. Identity verification is an important safeguard and will protect the user’s account from identity theft.

Anyone who lacks internet access or otherwise cannot use the online tool may unenroll by contacting the IRS at the phone number included in the outreach letter they received from the IRS.

Who is getting a monthly payment?

In general, monthly payments will go to eligible families who:

• Filed either a 2019 or 2020 federal income tax return.
• Used the Non-Filers tool on IRS.gov in 2020 to register for an Economic Impact Payment.
• Registered for the advance Child Tax Credit this year using the new Non-Filer Sign-up Tool on IRS.gov.

An eligible family who took any of these steps does not need to do anything else to get their payments.

Normally, the IRS will calculate the advance payment based on the 2020 income tax return. If that return is not available, either because it has not yet been filed or it has not yet been processed, the IRS is instead determining the payment using the 2019 tax return.

Eligible families will receive advance payments, either by direct deposit or check. Each payment will be up to $300 per month for each child under age 6 and up to $250 per month for each child ages 6 through 17. The IRS will issue advance Child Tax Credit payments on these dates: July 15, August 13, September 15, October 15, November 15 and December 15.

Tax returns processed by June 28 will be reflected in the first batch of monthly payments scheduled for July 15.

Taxpayers will receive several letters

Taxpayers will also receive several letters related to the Child Tax Credit. In the next few weeks, letters are going to eligible families who filed either a 2019 or 2020 federal income tax return or who used the Non-Filers tool on IRS.gov to register for an Economic Impact Payment. The letters will confirm their eligibility, the amount of payments they’ll receive and that the payments begin July 15. Families who receive these letters do not need to take any further action. The personalized letters follow up on the Advance Child Tax Credit Outreach Letter, sent in early- and mid-June, to every family who appeared to qualify for the advance payments.

Child Tax Credit 2021

The IRS has created a special Advance Child Tax Credit 2021 page, designed to provide the most up-to-date information about the credit and the advance payments.

Among other things, it provides direct links to the Child Tax Credit Update Portal, as well as two other online tools −the Non-filer Sign-up Tool and the Child Tax Credit Eligibility Assistant, a set of frequently asked questions and other useful resources.

Child Tax Credit changes

The American Rescue Plan raised the maximum Child Tax Credit in 2021 to $3,600 for children under the age of 6 and to $3,000 per child for children ages 6 through 17. Before 2021, the credit was worth up to $2,000 per eligible child.

The new maximum credit is available to taxpayers with a modified adjusted gross income (AGI) of:

• $75,000 or less for singles,
• $112,500 or less for heads of household and
• $150,000 or less for married couples filing a joint return and qualified widows and widowers.

For most people, modified AGI is the amount shown on Line 11 of their 2020 Form 1040 or 1040-SR. Above these income thresholds, the extra amount above the original $2,000 credit — either $1,000 or $1,600 per child — is reduced by $50 for every $1,000 in modified AGI. In addition, the credit is fully refundable for 2021. This means that eligible families can get it, even if they owe no federal income tax. Before this year, the refundable portion was limited to $1,400 per child.

For the most up-to-date information on the Child Tax Credit and advance payments, visit Advance Child Tax Credit Payments in 2021.

The Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers who pay estimated taxes that they have until June 15 to pay their estimated tax payment for the second quarter of tax year 2021 without penalty.

Estimated tax is the method used to pay tax on income that isn’t subject to withholding. This includes income from self-employment, interest, dividends, rent, gains from the sale of assets,

prizes and awards. You may also have to pay estimated tax if the amount of income tax being withheld from your salary, pension or other income isn’t enough.

See more at: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-reminder-approaching-june-15-deadline-for-second-quarter-estimated-tax-payments