What the earned income tax credit means for working families
The earned income tax credit (EITC) is one of the federal tax code’s largest benefits for workers with low to moderate incomes. Rather than just reducing the amount of tax you owe, the EITC is refundable, meaning you can get a refund even if you owe no tax. The credit adds money to the budgets of many eligible workers and families, helping ease the financial strain they face. In 2023, about 23 million households claimed the EITC on their 2022 tax returns, receiving an average refund of $2,541.
But many eligible families miss out because the rules about income, filing status, and qualifying children can be confusing. To claim the credit, you must file a tax return, even if your income is below the usual filing requirement.
Key Points
- The earned income tax credit (EITC) provides a refundable tax credit to workers with low to moderate incomes.
- Workers without qualifying children must be ages 25 to 64 and meet lower income limits to qualify.
- The income limits for qualifying, including the cap on investment income, adjust each year for inflation.
- A qualifying child must meet specific relationship, age, residency, and filing status rules.
Qualifying for the earned income tax credit (EITC)
Whether you qualify for the EITC depends on your income, your filing status, and whether you have a child who meets the Internal Revenue Service’s definition of a qualifying child.
To qualify for the earned income tax credit, you must:
- Have earned income
- Have less investment income than the annual limit ($11,950 for 2025)
- Have a valid Social Security number
- Be a U.S. citizen or resident alien
- Not file Form 2555 to report foreign income
- Use a filing status that qualifies for the EITC (married filing separately qualifies only in limited situations for separated spouses with a qualifying child)
In addition, you must either have a qualifying child or meet all of these requirements:
- Have lived in the U.S. for more than half the year
- Be at least 25 years old but under age 65
- Not be the qualifying child or claimed as a dependent by someone else
If you’re claiming the EITC with a qualifying child, you’ll need to provide the child’s information, which requires filling out Schedule EIC. If you don’t have a qualifying child, you can claim the credit directly on Form 1040.
Earned income rules for the EITC
To qualify for the EITC, you must have earned income from a job, either by working for a company or running your own business. Earned income includes wages, salary, and self-employment income. Earned income doesn’t include interest and dividends, pensions, annuities, Social Security, unemployment, alimony, or child support. These rules help ensure the tax credit goes to people who earn income from work.
Disability income and the EITC
Most disability payments don’t count as earned income for the EITC, but disability retirement benefits you receive before reaching your plan’s minimum retirement age do. Payments such as Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), military disability benefits, and disability insurance payments (if you paid the premiums yourself) aren’t counted as earned income for EITC purposes.
To receive the credit, you must have adjusted gross income (AGI) that falls under certain limits. The limits are adjusted each year for inflation.
| Number of qualifying children | Maximum AGI: Single, head of household, married filing separately, or widowed | Maximum AGI: Married filing jointly |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | $19,104 | $26,214 |
| 1 | $50,434 | $57,554 |
| 2 | $57,310 | $64,430 |
| 3 or more | $61,555 | $68,675 |
Who counts as a qualifying child?
A qualifying child must meet all of these criteria for the EITC:
- Have a valid Social Security number
- Have lived in the same home as you in the U.S. for more than half the year (or for half their life if they were born or died during the tax year)
- Not file a joint tax return, unless it is only to claim a refund on tax withheld from their paycheck
They must also meet the relationship test as your:
- Son, daughter, stepchild, adopted child, or eligible foster child
- Grandchild, niece, or nephew
- Brother, sister, half-sibling, stepbrother, or stepsister
And they must meet the age test by being:
- Under age 19 and younger than you (or your spouse)
- Under age 24 and a full-time student for at least five months of the year, and younger than you (or your spouse)
- Any age if permanently and totally disabled
Only one person can claim a child for the EITC. For parents who are divorced, separated, or living apart, the IRS has specific tiebreaker rules that determine which parent may claim the credit.
Military and clergy: Special EITC rules
Some income rules work differently for military members and clergy. Clergy must include the rental value of church-provided housing or a housing allowance when figuring earned income for the EITC. Members of the armed forces can choose to count certain nontaxable pay—such as combat pay, basic allowance for housing, or basic allowance for subsistence—as earned income when it helps them qualify for a larger credit.
Tax software or a preparer can help you compare which method gives you the bigger benefit.
If the IRS audits your return and determines you weren’t eligible for the credit, it may bar you from claiming it again for up to 10 years.
Maximum EITC amounts (2025)
The maximum amount you can receive depends on how many qualifying children you have.
| Number of qualifying children | Maximum credit (2025) |
|---|---|
| 0 | $649 |
| 1 | $4,328 |
| 2 | $7,152 |
| 3 or more | $8,046 |
When you can expect your refund
Because the IRS must verify EITC claims, the agency cannot issue EITC-related refunds before mid-February each year, even if you file early.
The bottom line
The earned income tax credit is one of the largest benefits available to working households. Even so, about one in five eligible households don’t claim the EITC each year. If you think you may qualify, it’s worth filing a return to find out; tax software and preparers can quickly determine your eligibility. And if you missed the credit in a prior year, you generally have up to three years to file an amended return and claim it.
Life changes can affect whether you qualify from one year to the next, so it’s helpful to check your eligibility regularly, especially if your income, household size, or work situation shifts.