Can I Claim My Child If I Didn’t Work?

Claiming a child on your tax return can offer financial advantages, even without earned income. The tax system provides various benefits designed to support families. Understanding these provisions is important for maximizing potential refunds or reducing tax liabilities.

Meeting the Qualifying Child Rules

To claim a child as a dependent for tax purposes, the child must meet five qualifying child tests outlined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS):
The relationship test requires the child to be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
The age test generally requires the child to be under age 19 at the end of the tax year, or under age 24 if a full-time student. This age limit does not apply if the child is permanently and totally disabled.
The residency test mandates the child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. Temporary absences for schooling, medical care, or military service do not count against this requirement.
The support test dictates the child cannot have provided more than half of their own support for the year. You, or you and other supporting parties, must have provided more than 50% of the child’s financial upkeep.
The joint return test specifies the child cannot file a joint tax return for the year, unless that return was filed solely to claim a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid.

Meeting these five tests establishes whether an individual qualifies as a dependent for various tax benefits.

Understanding Related Tax Benefits

Claiming a qualifying child can unlock several tax benefits, though eligibility depends on individual circumstances, especially concerning earned income. The Child Tax Credit (CTC) can reduce your tax liability by up to $2,000 per qualifying child. This credit is non-refundable, meaning it can only reduce your tax owed to zero, but not result in a refund beyond that amount. The credit begins to phase out for unmarried parents with incomes over $200,000 and married couples filing jointly with incomes over $400,000.

For taxpayers with little or no tax liability, the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) is the refundable portion of the CTC. This credit allows eligible taxpayers to receive a refund, even if they owe no tax. To qualify for the ACTC, you typically need at least $2,500 in earned income. The refundable amount is generally 15% of your earned income exceeding this threshold, up to a maximum of $1,700 per child for the 2024 and 2025 tax years. Schedule 8812 (Form 1040) is used to calculate and claim these child-related credits.

The Credit for Other Dependents (ODC) provides a non-refundable credit of up to $500 for qualifying dependents who do not meet the Child Tax Credit criteria, such as older children or qualifying relatives. Unlike the Child Tax Credit and ACTC, the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) has a strict earned income requirement. If you had no earned income, you would generally not qualify for the EITC, regardless of whether you have a qualifying child. The EITC provides a refundable credit for low-to-moderate income working individuals and families.

Filing Considerations Without Earned Income

Even without earned income, filing a tax return is often necessary to claim refundable credits like the Additional Child Tax Credit. While you might not meet the income threshold to be required to file, submitting Form 1040 allows you to receive any refund you are due. This applies if you have had tax withholding or qualify for refundable credits.

Having a qualifying child can also enable you to use the Head of Household filing status, even without earned income. This status generally provides a higher standard deduction and more favorable tax brackets compared to filing as Single. To qualify, you must be considered unmarried, pay more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year, and have a qualifying person live with you for more than half the year. The qualifying person is typically your child, stepchild, or foster child.

In situations where more than one person could claim the same child, the IRS applies specific tie-breaker rules. If only one taxpayer is the child’s parent, the child is generally the qualifying child of that parent. If both parents could claim the child but do not file a joint return, the child is typically claimed by the parent with whom the child lived for the longest period. If the child lived with each parent for an equal amount of time, the parent with the higher adjusted gross income (AGI) claims the child. If neither parent claims the child, another eligible taxpayer may claim the child only if their AGI is higher than that of either parent. For all claims involving dependents, you must have the child’s Social Security number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) by the tax return due date.