Additional Child Tax Credit

To claim the additional child tax credit, you must have a valid SSN, which means it must be valid for employment and issued before the due date of your return (including extensions). If you are filing a joint return, only one spouse is required to have a valid SSN in order to be eligible for the credit. The other spouse must have either an SSN or ITIN, and it must have been issued on or before the due date of the return.

See Schedule 8812 and its instructions for information on figuring and claiming any additional child tax credit that you may qualify to claim. If you are claiming the additional child tax credit, complete Schedule 8812 and attach it to your Form 1040 or 1040-SR.

If you do not want to claim the additional child tax credit, check the box on line 28.

Form 8862, who must file.

You must file Form 8862 to claim the additional child tax credit if your child tax credit (refundable or nonrefundable depending on the tax year), additional child tax credit, or credit for other dependents for a year after 2015 was denied or reduced for any reason other than a math or clerical error. Attach a completed Form 8862 to your 2025 return to claim the credit for 2025. Don’t file Form 8862 if you filed Form 8862 for 2024 and the child tax credit, additional child tax credit, or credit for other dependents was allowed for that year. See Form 8862 and its instructions for details.

If you claim the additional child tax credit even though you aren’t eligible and it is determined that your error is due to reckless or intentional disregard of the additional child tax credit rules, you won’t be allowed to take the child tax credit, the credit for other dependents, or the additional child tax credit for 2 years even if you’re otherwise eligible to do so. If you claim the additional child tax credit even though you aren’t eligible and it is later determined that you fraudulently claimed the credit, you won’t be allowed to take the child tax credit, the credit for other dependents, or the additional child tax credit for 10 years. You may also have to pay penalties.

Refunds for returns claiming the additional child tax credit can’t be issued before mid-February 2026. This delay applies to the entire refund, not just the portion associated with the additional child tax credit.