IRS Publication 596 is the agency’s plain-language guide to the Earned Income Tax Credit, a refundable credit for working people with low to moderate income. For the 2025 tax year (returns filed in 2026), the credit ranges from $649 with no qualifying children up to $8,046 with three or more qualifying children, depending on your income and filing status.1Internal Revenue Service. Earned Income and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Tables Because the credit is refundable, you can receive the full amount as a refund even if you owe no federal income tax.2Internal Revenue Service. Topic No 601, Earned Income Credit
Who Qualifies
You need a valid Social Security number issued on or before the return’s due date (including extensions), and that SSN must authorize you to work in the United States. Cards marked “NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT” don’t qualify. Everyone you list for the credit needs a qualifying SSN: you, your spouse if filing jointly, and every child you claim.3Internal Revenue Service. Who Qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit If you or your spouse holds only an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, you generally cannot claim the credit.4Internal Revenue Service. EITC Central – Basic Qualifications
You must have earned income during the year. That includes wages, salary, tips, and net earnings from self-employment. Disability retirement benefits count too, but only until you reach your plan’s minimum retirement age; after that, they stop qualifying.5Internal Revenue Service. Disability and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
Investment income for 2025 cannot exceed $11,950. That category is broader than many people expect: it includes taxable and tax-exempt interest, dividends, capital gains, royalties, rents from personal property, and income from passive business activities.6Congressional Budget Office. Lower the Investment Income Limit for the Earned Income Tax Credit
You must be a U.S. citizen or resident alien for the whole tax year, and you cannot be someone else’s qualifying child.7Internal Revenue Service. Eligibility Rules Outlined for EITC Filing Form 2555 to claim the foreign earned income exclusion disqualifies you entirely.8Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 2555 (2025)
Filing Status
Single, Head of Household, Qualifying Surviving Spouse, and Married Filing Jointly all work. Married Filing Separately can also work, but only if you had a qualifying child who lived with you for more than half the year and you either lived apart from your spouse for the last six months of the year or were legally separated under a written agreement or court decree. If you and your spouse lived together at year end, you must file jointly to claim the credit.3Internal Revenue Service. Who Qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit
Qualifying Child Rules
Claiming a qualifying child sharply increases the credit. A child must satisfy three tests.
Relationship
The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, adopted child, foster child, sibling, half-sibling, stepsibling, or a descendant of any of these, such as a grandchild, niece, or nephew. Relationships created by marriage continue after divorce or the death of a spouse.9Internal Revenue Service. Qualifying Child Rules
Residency
The child must have lived with you in the United States for more than half the year. Temporary absences for school, medical care, or similar reasons still count as time at home.9Internal Revenue Service. Qualifying Child Rules
Age
At year end, the child must be under 19, or under 24 if enrolled full time as a student for at least five months of the year. In either case, the child must be younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly). There is no age limit if the child was permanently and totally disabled at any point during the year.9Internal Revenue Service. Qualifying Child Rules
When Two People Could Claim the Same Child
A parent always takes priority over a non-parent. If two parents who don’t file jointly both try to claim the same child, the credit goes to the parent the child lived with longer during the year; if the time was equal, it goes to the parent with the higher adjusted gross income.10Internal Revenue Service. Other EITC Issues A non-parent can claim the child only when no parent claims the credit and the non-parent’s AGI exceeds every parent’s.11Internal Revenue Service. Tie-Breaker Rules
Claiming the EITC Without a Qualifying Child
You can still claim a smaller credit with no qualifying child, but the age window is tight. You must be at least 25 and under 65 at year end. On a joint return, only one spouse needs to fall inside that range. When you claim the credit with a qualifying child, no age requirement applies.3Internal Revenue Service. Who Qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit
2025 Income Limits and Maximum Credits
The EITC caps out at a maximum credit and cuts off entirely once your AGI passes the ceiling for your filing status and number of children.1Internal Revenue Service. Earned Income and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Tables
- No qualifying children: maximum credit $649; AGI below $19,104 (single or head of household) or $26,214 (married filing jointly).
- One qualifying child: maximum credit $4,328; AGI below $50,434 or $57,554.
- Two qualifying children: maximum credit $7,152; AGI below $57,310 or $64,430.
- Three or more qualifying children: maximum credit $8,046; AGI below $61,555 or $68,675.
The $11,950 investment income cap applies regardless of family size.
How the Credit Is Calculated
The EITC phases in as your earned income grows, hits a maximum, then phases out as income keeps rising. Both rates depend on the number of qualifying children:12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 32 – Earned Income
- No qualifying children: 7.65% credit rate, 7.65% phaseout rate.
- One qualifying child: 34% credit rate, 15.98% phaseout rate.
- Two qualifying children: 40% credit rate, 21.06% phaseout rate.
- Three or more qualifying children: 45% credit rate, 21.06% phaseout rate.
With one qualifying child and $10,000 of earned income, the preliminary credit is 34% of $10,000, or $3,400. Once your AGI crosses the phaseout threshold, the credit shrinks by roughly 16 cents for every additional dollar of income. The exact amount comes from the EIC tables in Publication 596 or the worksheets in the Form 1040 instructions. You can also let the IRS figure the credit for you by following the steps in Chapter 4 of Publication 596.13Internal Revenue Service. IRS Publication 596 – Earned Income Credit
Military and Clergy Rules
Nontaxable combat pay normally stays off your return, but for EITC purposes you can elect to count it as earned income, which sometimes produces a larger credit when other earnings are low. On a joint return, each spouse decides independently, and if you elect to include combat pay you must include all of it.14Internal Revenue Service. Military and Clergy Rules for the Earned Income Tax Credit
Ministers and clergy must include the rental value of a parsonage or a housing allowance as earned income for the EITC, even when that amount isn’t taxable. The exception is clergy who hold an approved Form 4361 or Form 4029 exempting them from self-employment tax. Wages and salary paid to clergy who are church employees still count as earned income regardless of any exemption. Non-employee income such as fees for weddings or honoraria does not count toward EITC earned income.14Internal Revenue Service. Military and Clergy Rules for the Earned Income Tax Credit
Filing and Refund Timing
Claim the credit on Form 1040. If you have one or more qualifying children, attach Schedule EIC with each child’s identifying information.15Internal Revenue Service. About Schedule EIC (Form 1040 or 1040-SR)
Under the PATH Act, the IRS cannot release refunds on returns claiming the EITC or the Additional Child Tax Credit before February 15, and the hold applies to the entire refund. If you file electronically, choose direct deposit, and your return has no issues, the refund generally arrives by early March.16Internal Revenue Service. When to Expect Your Refund if You Claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit
What Happens If the IRS Denies Your Claim
If the IRS reduces or denies your EITC, you must file Form 8862 the next time you claim it. That is a one-time step; you don’t file it again unless a later claim is denied.17Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8862 (12/2025)
Penalties climb with intent. A determination of reckless or intentional disregard of the rules bans you from claiming the credit for two years after the final determination. A finding of fraud extends the ban to ten years.18Internal Revenue Service. What to Do if We Deny Your Claim for a Credit An accuracy-related penalty of 20% of the resulting underpayment can also apply.19Internal Revenue Service. Accuracy-Related Penalty
Free Preparation Help and State Credits
Most people who qualify for the EITC also qualify for free tax preparation through the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. VITA serves taxpayers who generally earn $69,000 or less, people with disabilities, and taxpayers with limited English. Volunteers meet IRS training standards, and every return goes through a quality review before filing. Find a site with the VITA locator on irs.gov or by calling 800-906-9887.20Internal Revenue Service. Free Tax Return Preparation for Qualifying Taxpayers
More than 30 states, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, offer their own EITC, usually calculated as a percentage of the federal credit. If you qualify federally, check your state’s rules; the additional credit can add meaningfully to your refund.