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3. Rules If You Do Not Have a Qualifying Child Use this chapter if you don't have a qualifying child and have met all the rules in chapter 1. This chapter discusses Rules 11 through 14. You must meet all four of those rules, in addition to the rules in chapters 1 and 4, to qualify for the earned income credit without a qualifying child. If you meet all the rules in chapter 1 and this chapter, read chapter 4 to find out what to do next. If you have a qualifying child. If you meet Rule 8, you have a qualifying child. If you meet Rule 8 and don't claim the EIC with a qualifying child, you can claim the EIC with- out a qualifying child. If your child meets the tests to be your qualifying child, but also meets the tests to be the qualifying child of another person, only one of you can ac- tually treat the child as a qualifying child to claim the EIC. If the other person can claim the child under the tiebreaker rules, you can't claim the EIC as a taxpayer with a qualify- ing child unless you have another qualifying child. How- ever, you may be able to claim the EIC without a qualifying child. Rule 11—You Must Meet the Age Requirements For 2021, you no longer need to be younger than age 65 to claim the EIC. The minimum age to claim the EIC is generally age 19; however, if you are a specified student (other than a qualified former foster youth or a qualified homeless youth), you need to be at least age 24. If you are a qualified former foster youth or a qualified homeless youth, you need to be at least age 18. You, or your spouse if married filing a joint return, were at least age 19 at the end of 2021 if you, or your spouse if filing a joint return, were born before January 2, 2003. You, or your spouse if married filing a joint return, were at least age 24 at the end of 2021 if you, or your spouse if filing a joint return, were born before January 2, 1998. You, or your spouse if filing a joint return, were at least age 18 at the end of 2021 if you, or your spouse if filing a joint return, were born before January 2, 2004. Qualified former foster youth. You are a qualified for- mer foster youth if (1) on or after the date you attained age 14, you were in foster care provided under the supervision or administration of an entity administering (or eligible to administer) a plan under part B (related to child welfare agencies) or part E (related to federal payments of TIP monthly payments for eligible children) of title IV of the So- cial Security Act (without regard to whether federal assis- tance was provided to you under such part E), and (2) you consent for entities who administer a plan under part B or part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to disclose infor- mation related to your status as a qualified former foster youth. If you qualify as a former foster youth and satisfy all the other requirements for claiming the EIC, check the box on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 27a. Qualified homeless youth. You are a qualified home- less youth if you certify that you are an unaccompanied child or youth who is homeless or who is at risk of home- lessness, and are self-supporting. To certify that you are a qualified homeless youth and that you satisfy all the other requirements for claiming the EIC, check the box on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 27a. Specified student. You qualify as a specified student if you were enrolled in a program that leads to a degree, certificate, or other recognized educational credential, and carried at least one-half the normal workload for your course of study during at least 5 calendar months of the year or an academic period, if longer. For purposes of de- termining whether you were enrolled during at least 5 cal- endar months, count any month during which you were enrolled for at least part of the month. The 5 months do not need to be consecutive. For more information on whether your educational program or course load meets the qualifications for you to be a specified student, see the Instructions for Form 8863. Example 1. You are age 19, unmarried, and not a specified student. You meet the age test. Example 2—Spouse meets age test. You are mar- ried and filing a joint return. Neither you nor your spouse are specified students or qualified former foster youth or qualified homeless youth. You are age 18 and your spouse is age 21. You meet the age test because your spouse is at least age 19. Death of spouse. If you are filing a joint return with your spouse who died in 2021, you meet the minimum age if your spouse met the minimum age at the time of death. Your spouse is considered to reach the minimum age on the day before his or her birthday. Your spouse isn't considered to be the minimum age at the end of 2021 un- less he or she met the minimum age at the time of his or her death. Example. You are married and filing a joint return. Nei- ther you, nor your spouse, is a qualified former foster youth, former homeless youth, or a specified student. Your spouse was born on February 14, 2002, and died on February 13, 2021. Your spouse is considered age 19 at TIP TIP Chapter 3 Rules If You Do Not Have a Qualifying Child Page 17