U.S. Individual Income Tax Return Forms

Instructions for Form 8862

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

(Rev. December 2020)

Information To Claim Certain Credits After Disallowance
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless
otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to Form 8862
and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were
published, go to IRS.gov/Form8862.

Reminders
Delayed refund for returns claiming certain credits. The IRS
cannot issue refunds before mid-February for returns that claim the
earned income credit (EIC) or the additional child tax credit (ACTC).
This applies to the entire refund, not just the portion associated with
these credits.
Taxpayer identification number needed by due date of return.
You must have a taxpayer identification number issued on or before
the due date of the return to claim the earned income credit (EIC),
child tax credit (CTC)/ additional child tax credit (ACTC)/ credit for
other dependents (ODC), or American opportunity tax credit
(AOTC). See below for more information on each credit.
Earned income credit (EIC). If you haven’t been issued a social
security number (SSN) valid for employment on or before the due
date of your return (including extensions), you cannot claim the EIC
on either your original or amended return. Also, if a child hasn't been
issued a valid SSN on or before the due date of your return
(including extensions), you cannot count that child as a qualifying
child in figuring the EIC on either your original or amended return.
Child tax credit (CTC)/Additional child tax credit (ACTC)/
Credit for other dependents (ODC). Your child must have the
required SSN to be a qualifying child for the CTC/ACTC. Children
identified by an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) or
adoption taxpayer identification number (ATIN) are not qualifying
children for the CTC or ACTC. If your child hasn’t been issued an
SSN that is valid for employment before the due date of your return
(including extensions), you cannot use the child to claim the CTC/
ACTC on either your original or amended return. Dependents used
to claim the ODC must have been issued an SSN, ITIN, or ATIN on
or before the due date of your return (including extensions).
You must have an SSN or ITIN to claim the CTC, ACTC, or ODC
for a dependent. If you haven’t been issued an SSN or ITIN on or
before the due date of your return (including extensions), you cannot
claim the CTC, ACTC, or ODC on either your original or amended
return.
American opportunity tax credit (AOTC). You must have an
SSN or ITIN to claim the AOTC. If you haven’t been issued an SSN
or ITIN on or before the due date of your return (including
extensions), you cannot claim the AOTC on either your original or
amended return. Also, the AOTC is not allowed on either your
original or amended return for a student who hasn’t been issued an
SSN, ITIN, or ATIN on or before the due date of your return
(including extensions).
See your tax return instructions for more information.

General Instructions
Purpose of Form

AND...

THEN...

Your EIC for a year after
1996 was reduced or
disallowed for any reason
other than a math or
clerical error

You now meet all the
requirements for and
want to take the EIC

You must file Form 8862

Your CTC, ACTC, or ODC
for a year after 2015 was
reduced or disallowed for
any reason other than a
math or clerical error

You now meet all the
requirements for and
want to take the CTC,
ACTC, or ODC

You must file Form 8862

Your AOTC for a year
You now meet all the
after 2015 was reduced or requirements for and
disallowed for any reason want to take the AOTC
other than a math or
clerical error

!

CAUTION

issued.

You must file Form 8862

You must attach the applicable schedules and forms to your
return for each credit you claim. You may be asked to
provide other information before any refund claimed is

Exceptions. Do not file Form 8862 if:
• After your EIC, CTC/ACTC/ODC, or AOTC was reduced or
disallowed in an earlier year (a) you filed Form 8862 (or other
documents) and your credit was then allowed, and (b) your credit
has not been reduced or disallowed again for any reason other than
a math or clerical error.
• You are taking the EIC without a qualifying child and the only
reason your EIC was reduced or disallowed in the earlier year was
because it was determined that a child listed on Schedule EIC was
not your qualifying child.
In either of these cases, you can take the credit(s) without filing
Form 8862 if you meet all the credit’s eligibility requirements.
Do not file Form 8862 for the:
• 2 years after the most recent tax year for which there was a final
determination that your EIC, CTC/ACTC/ODC, or AOTC claim was
due to reckless or intentional disregard of the rules, or
• 10 years after the most recent tax year for which there was a final
determination that your EIC, CTC/ACTC/ODC, or AOTC claim was
due to fraud.
In either of these cases, you cannot take the credit(s).
Have an ITIN instead of an SSN? You must have a valid SSN to
claim the EIC. An SSN issued on or before the due date of your
2020 return (including extensions), that allows you to work is valid
for EIC purposes. You can have an ITIN instead of an SSN to claim
the CTC, ACTC, ODC, or AOTC. If you have an ITIN, enter your ITIN
in the "social security number" space on the form.
Need more space for an item? If you need more space for an
item, attach a statement to the end of your return that includes your
name and SSN (or ITIN). Number each entry on the statement to
correspond with the line number on Form 8862.

Specific Instructions

You must complete Form 8862 and attach it to your tax return to
claim the EIC, CTC, ACTC, ODC, or AOTC if you meet the following
criteria for any of the credits.

Oct 13, 2020

IF...

Part I—All Filers
Line 1. Enter the year for which you are filing this form to claim the
credit(s) (for example, 2020). Do not enter the year the credit(s) was
disallowed.

Cat. No. 25343K

than 90 days. Once you begin serving extended active duty, you are
considered to be on extended active duty even if you do not serve
more than 90 days.

Line 2. Check the box(es) that applies to the credit(s) you are now
claiming. You can check a box for each credit that was previously
reduced or disallowed.

Line 10. If your spouse died during the year on line 1, or you are
preparing a return for someone who died during the year on line 1,
the age test is met if your spouse, or the deceased taxpayer, was at
least age 25 but under age 65 at the time of death.
Your spouse, or the deceased taxpayer, is considered to reach
age 25 on the day before his or her 25th birthday. However, the rule
for reaching age 65 is different; your spouse, or the deceased
taxpayer, reaches age 65 on his or her 65th birthday.

Part II—Earned Income Credit
Line 4. If you (or your spouse if filing jointly) were a qualifying child
of another taxpayer for the year shown on line 1, you cannot claim
the EIC. Check “Yes” on line 4. This is true even if the taxpayer for
whom you (or your spouse if filing jointly) are a qualifying child does
not claim the EIC or meet all of the rules to claim the EIC. For more
information, see Pub. 596, Earned Income Credit.
Check "No" on line 4 if you could be claimed as a qualifying child
of another taxpayer for the year shown on line 1 but the other
taxpayer is not required to file, and is not filing, a tax return for that
year or is filing it only as a claim for refund.

Example 1. You are married and filing a joint return with your
spouse who died in August 2020 You are age 67. Your spouse
would have become age 65 in November 2020. Because your
spouse was under age 65 when she died, you meet the age test.
Example 2. Your spouse was born on February 14, 1995, and
died on February 13, 2020. Your spouse is considered age 25 at the
time of death. However, if your spouse died on February 12, 2020,
your spouse isn't considered age 25 at the time of death and isn't at
least age 25 at the end of 2020.

Section A: Filers With a Qualifying Child or
Children
Line 6. A qualifying child for the EIC is a child who:
1. Is your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister,
stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, or a descendant of
any of them (for example, your grandchild, niece, or nephew);
2. Was (a) under age 19 at the end of the year on line 1 and
younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly), (b) under age 24
at the end of the year on line 1, a student, and younger than you (or
your spouse, if filing jointly), or (c) any age and permanently and
totally disabled;
3. Is not filing a joint return for the year on line 1 or is filing a joint
return for the year on line 1 only to claim a refund of withheld income
tax or estimated tax paid; and
4. Lived with you in the United States for more than half of the
year on line 1.

Part III—Child Tax Credit/Additional
Child Tax Credit/Credit for Other
Dependents
Line 14. Generally, a child must live with you for more than half of
the year for you to claim the credit. A child is considered to have
lived with you for more than half of the year if the child was born or
died during the year on line 1 and your home was this child's home
for more than half the time he or she was alive. Temporary absences
by you or the child for special circumstances, such as school,
vacation, business, medical care, military service, or detention in a
juvenile facility, count as time the child lived with you.
However, there are exceptions for kidnapped children and
children of divorced or separated parents. If you meet one of these
exceptions, answer "Yes" to question 14 for that child. For details,
see your tax return instructions.

Adopted child. An adopted child is always treated as your own
child. An adopted child includes a child lawfully placed with you for
legal adoption.
For more information on who is a qualifying child see your tax
return instructions or Pub. 596.

Line 15. A qualifying child for purposes of the CTC is a child who:
1. Is your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister,
stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, or a descendant of
any of them (for example, your grandchild, niece, or nephew);
2. Was under age 17 at the end of the year;
3. Did not provide over half of his or her own support for the
year;
4. Lived with you for more than half of the year;
5. Is claimed as a dependent on your return;
6. Does not file a joint return for the year (or files it only to claim
a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid); and
7. Was a U.S. citizen, a U.S. national, or a U.S. resident alien.
See Pub. 519 for the definition of a U.S. national or U.S. resident
alien.

Line 7. You cannot take the credit for a child who lived with you for
half of the year or less, even if you paid most of the child's living
expenses. The IRS may ask you for documents to show you lived
with each qualifying child. Documents you might want to keep for
this purpose include school and child care records and other
records that show your child's address.
Temporary absences by you or the child for special
circumstances, such as school, vacation, business, medical care,
military service, or detention in a juvenile facility, count as time the
child lived with you.
If your child was born or died during the year entered on line 1
and your home was the child's home for more than half the time he
or she was alive during that year, enter "365" ("366" if the year is a
leap year) on line 7 and complete line 8.
For more information, see your tax return instructions or Pub.
596.

Adopted child. An adopted child is always treated as your own
child. An adopted child includes a child lawfully placed with you for
legal adoption.
For more information on who is a qualifying child, see your tax
return instructions or Pub. 972, Child Tax Credit and Credit for Other
Dependents.

Section B: Filers Without a Qualifying Child or
Children
Line 9. Enter the number of days that your main home (and your
spouse's if filing jointly) was in the United States during the year on
line 1.
Temporary absences for special circumstances such as for
business, medical care, school, or military service, count as time
lived at your main home.
Members of the military. If you were on extended active duty
outside the United States, your main home is considered to be in the
United States during that duty period. Extended active duty is
military duty ordered for an indefinite period or for a period of more

Line 16. You cannot claim the CTC/ACTC/ODC for a person who is
not your dependent. See your tax return instructions for more
information.

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• If the parents file a joint return together and can claim the child as
a qualifying child, the child is treated as the qualifying child of the
parents.
• If the parents do not file a joint return together but both parents
claim the child as a qualifying child, the IRS will treat the child as the
qualifying child of the parent with whom the child lived for the longer
period of time during the year. If the child lived with each parent for
the same amount of time, the IRS will treat the child as the qualifying
child of the parent who had the higher adjusted gross income (AGI)
for the year.
• If no parent can claim the child as a qualifying child, the child is
treated as the qualifying child of the person who had the highest AGI
for the year.
• If a parent can claim the child as a qualifying child but no parent
does so claim the child, the child is treated as the qualifying child of
the person who had the highest AGI for the year, but only if that
person's AGI is higher than the highest AGI of any of the child's
parents who can claim the child. If the child's parents file a joint
return with each other, this rule can be applied by dividing the
parents' combined AGI equally between the parents.

Part IV—American Opportunity Tax
Credit
Line 19a. An eligible student for purposes of the AOTC is a student
for whom you pay qualified education expenses and meets all of the
following requirements.
1. The student did not have expenses that were used to figure
an AOTC in any 4 earlier tax years. This includes any tax year(s) in
which the Hope scholarship credit was claimed for the same
student.
2. The student had not completed the first 4 years of
post-secondary education (generally, the freshman, sophomore,
junior, and senior years of college) before the year on line 1.
3. For at least one academic period beginning in the year on
line 1 (or the first 3 months of the following year if the qualified
expenses were paid in the previous year), the student was enrolled
at least half-time in a program leading to a degree, certificate, or
other recognized educational credential.
4. The student has not been convicted of any federal or state
felony for possessing or distributing a controlled substance as of the
end of the year on line 1.

Subject to these tiebreaker rules, you and the other person may
be able to choose which of you claims the child as a qualifying child.
For more information on this and other rules that may apply, see
your tax return instructions and Pub. 501, Dependents, Standard
Deduction, and Filing Information.

See Pub. 970 and the Instructions for Form 8863 for more
information.
Line 19b. If the AOTC has been claimed for a student for any 4 tax
years before the year on line 1 (including any year for which the
Hope scholarship credit was claimed for the student), the AOTC
cannot be claimed for this student for the year on line 1.
You cannot claim the AOTC based on qualified education
expenses paid for a student by someone other than yourself or your
spouse, unless you are claiming the student as a dependent.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for you to obtain the
information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the
United States. You are required to obtain this information.
You are not required to obtain the information requested on a
form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form
displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a
form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue
law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as
required by Internal Revenue Code section 6103.

Part V—Qualifying Child of More Than
One Person

A child may meet the relationship, age, residency, support, and joint
return tests to be a qualifying child of more than one person.
Although the child is a qualifying child of each of these persons, only
one person can actually treat the child as a qualifying child to take
the EIC, CTC/ACTC/ODC, or AOTC (provided the person is eligible
for the credit).
To determine which person can treat the child as a qualifying
child to claim any of these credits, the following tiebreaker rules
apply.
• If only one of the persons is the child's parent, the child is treated
as the qualifying child of the parent.

The average time and expenses required to complete and file
this form will vary depending on individual circumstances. For the
estimated averages, see the instructions for your income tax return.
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time
estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be
happy to hear from you. See the instructions for the tax return with
which this form is filed.

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