Child Tax Credit 2026: Amount, Income Limits, and Refundable Credit

2026 Child Tax Credit at a glance

The maximum credit is not automatically the refund amount. The nonrefundable portion can reduce regular federal income tax to zero. The Additional Child Tax Credit may then make part of the unused credit refundable, subject to earned-income rules and the $1,700-per-child refundable ceiling. Other limits can apply when foreign earned income is excluded or when Social Security number requirements are not met.

How the income phaseout works

The credit is generally reduced by $50 for each $1,000, or fraction of $1,000, that modified adjusted gross income exceeds the applicable threshold. A single filer with $205,000 of MAGI is $5,000 over the threshold, so the preliminary credit reduction is $250. A married couple filing jointly does not enter the phaseout until MAGI exceeds $400,000.

Phaseout calculations apply to the household's total available credit, not separately to each child. The calculator can estimate the reduction, but the filed result also depends on tax liability, earned income, dependent eligibility, and other Form 1040 information.

Qualifying-child checklist

A child who does not meet the CTC age or identification rules may still qualify for the nonrefundable Credit for Other Dependents. Custody, release of a dependency claim, and head-of-household rules are related but separate tests, so divorced or separated parents should review the controlling IRS instructions rather than assuming all benefits follow the same parent.

• The child is under age 17 at the end of the tax year and is claimed as your dependent.
• The child meets the IRS relationship, residency, support, and joint-return tests.
• The child has the required Social Security number issued by the return's due date, including extensions.
• Tie-breaker rules are reviewed when more than one taxpayer could claim the same child.