RI Parents Receive First Child Tax Credits: What To Know

PROVIDENCE, RI — Most Rhode Island taxpayers with children started receiving $300 monthly payments Thursday as part of the federal American Rescue Plan approved earlier this year.

The payments are part of changes made by the American Rescue Plan passed by Congress earlier this year.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Budget Committee, said he was "going to fight to make these changes permanent."

"After a really challenging stretch for Rhode Island families, Democrats have marshalled the full power of the federal government to get an entire generation of children off to a stronger start," Whitehouse said. "The expanded Child Tax Credit represents a fundamental shift in the level of federal support available to help families get into the middle class and stay there."

Taxpayers will receive payments of $300 per month for children between ages 0 and 5 and $250 children aged 6 to 17. The payments will continue through the end of the year, with the remainder of the tax credit being applied to your 2021 tax bill. The total allowed under the Child Tax Credit is $3,600 for children 0 to 5 and $3,000 for children 6 to 17.

Families qualify for the credit if their income is below $75,000 for single filers, $112,000 for people filing as head of household and $150,000 for people who are married and filing jointly.

In most cases, payments will be sent automatically. You do not need to take any action if you filed tax returns in 2019 or 2020, or if signed up to receive a stimulus check from the Internal Revenue Service. The payments will be sent via direct deposit. If the IRS does not have your direct deposit information, a check will be mailed.

Families who did not file a tax return for 2019 or 2020 and who did not use the IRS Non-filers tool last year to sign up for the Economic Impact Payments, should go online and use the IRS Child Tax Credit Non-filer Sign-up Tool to sign up.

Nationwide, roughly 39 million households, covering almost 90 percent of children in the United States, began getting this relief automatically.