The final deadline to report changes for the last child tax credit payment of the year, for those receiving the monthly advance checks, is fast approaching. That payment is set to come out on Dec. 15.
The deadline to make changes is Monday, Nov. 29, at 11:59 p.m. ET.
People who are already signed up to receive the payments can use the IRS child tax credit update portal to opt-out of the monthly payment, report a change of annual income, switch from paper check to direct deposit, update bank account information or their update mailing address.
Also, for the first time, the tool is now available in Spanish.
The child tax credit is $3,600 annually for children under age 6 and $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17. Eligible families who did not opt-out of the monthly payments are receiving $300 monthly for each child under 6 and $250 per older child. Half of the total money is going out via the monthly payments, which started in July. The rest will come at tax time next year.
The benefits begin to phase out at incomes of $75,000 for individuals, $112,500 for heads of household and $150,000 for married couples who file taxes jointly. The amount is based on 2019 or 2020 tax returns, whichever was most recently received by the IRS. People who didn't file returns, generally low-income earners, were able to sign up using a non-filers tool. But, the deadline to register to receive any monthly payments has passed.
Families with incomes up to $200,000 for individuals and $400,000 for married couples, can still receive $2,000. That's what the child tax credit came out to for all eligible families before the increase was passed under the American Rescue Plan in March.
The advance monthly payment is due to expire after this year. It is currently part of the Build Back Better package passed last week by the House. But, the bill must go through the Senate, where provisions could be added or stripped out. If the advance monthly payments are not extended, the child tax credit will revert to its $2,000 lump sum for 2022, which can be collected at tax time in 2023.