The Biden-Harris administration is working to educate the public about what they call “the largest Child Tax Credit in history.”
The expanded Child Tax Credit under President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan provides $3,000 per child for families whose children are 6-17 years old, and $3,600 per child for kids under age six. It applies to families making less than $150,000 or single-parent families making less than $112,500 annually. Payments will be disbursed beginning July 15, 2021.
Families who filed tax returns for 2019 or 2020 or signed up for a stimulus check from the IRS will receive this tax relief automatically. Families will receive the Child Tax Credit monthly via direct deposit or mail until the end of 2021. For every child 6-17 years old, families will get $250 each month, and for every child under 6 years old, families will get $300 each month.
According to the White House, almost all families who have filed taxes in the last two years will receive this monthly payment automatically. This means most families with two young children would receive a monthly payment of $600 starting next month.
“But we want to make sure that everybody who is eligible signs up,” said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki at a briefing on Tuesday. “And if anybody is not sure— maybe they haven’t filed taxes because they’re not required to— they can go there and learn if they’re eligible for this incredible benefit.”
The Administration has launched a website: ChildTaxCredit.gov to answer potential questions about the program.
The expanded Child Tax Credit enacted in the American Rescue Plan is only for 2021. The Administration has proposed the American Families Plan, and if it passes Congress, relief would be extended for another four years.