Our baby was born 12/20/22...Tax preparer says we only qualify for a $600 tax credit?

Wait, so I should be getting $2,000, not $600? We definitely have his social security card (got it about 3 weeks after he was born) and we gave that to our preparer. Our combined income is about $82,000 if that matters. Is there a different form we need to file or something?

You're eligible for up to $2,000, but how much you actually receive depends on your tax situation. With your income of $82,000, you shouldn't be hitting the phase-out limits (those start at $200,000 for single filers and $400,000 for married filing jointly). The credit first reduces your tax liability dollar-for-dollar. If your tax liability is less than $2,000, the excess can be refunded up to $1,400 (this is the Additional Child Tax Credit portion). But there are earned income requirements for this refundable portion. Ask your preparer specifically why you're only getting $600 - whether it's a limitation based on your tax liability or if there's an issue with the Additional Child Tax Credit calculation.

How exactly does this AI thing work? Do you just upload pictures of your documents and it figures everything out? I'm dealing with a similar issue where I'm getting way less than expected for my twins born in November.

I'm pretty skeptical about giving my tax documents to some random website. How do you know it's secure? And can it actually find mistakes that a professional tax preparer wouldn't catch?

You just take pictures of your tax documents with your phone and upload them - the system extracts all the important numbers and runs its analysis. It's really good at finding specific tax credits you qualify for based on your situation. For your twins, it would definitely identify the correct child tax credit amount and make sure you're getting both the regular and additional portions. The security is actually better than most tax software. They use the same encryption as banks, and they don't store your documents after analysis. And yes, it absolutely catches mistakes professionals make - tax preparers often miss specific credits or don't optimize certain calculations, especially with complicated rules like the Additional Child Tax Credit formula.

Wait I don't understand. How does this work exactly? Does this service somehow have special access to the IRS phone lines? I've been trying to reach someone about a missing child tax credit for weeks.

Yeah right. There's absolutely no way to skip the IRS phone queue. This sounds like a total scam to me. I've been dealing with the IRS for years and there are no "shortcuts" to reaching them. They'll call you back when they feel like it, not because some magic service made it happen.

It doesn't skip the line at all - it just waits in it for you! Their system calls the IRS and navigates through all the phone prompts, then stays on hold instead of you having to do it. When an agent is about to answer, you get a call connecting you directly to that agent. It's basically just holding your place in line so you don't have to sit there listening to hold music for hours. Nope, not a scam at all. It's just an automated system that stays on hold instead of you having to do it yourself. Think of it like those restaurant pagers that buzz when your table is ready, except for the IRS phone line. The service has been featured in major news outlets too. I was definitely skeptical at first, but it worked exactly as described and saved me from wasting an entire afternoon on hold.

I just checked my tax packet and don't see a Form 8812 anywhere! There's a 1040, Schedule EIC, and some schedules about our student loan interest, but definitely no 8812. Is that something I should specifically ask for?

Yes, absolutely ask about Form 8812! That's the Additional Child Tax Credit form and it's required to get the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit. Without it, you might only be getting a portion of what you're entitled to. If your tax liability (the amount of tax you owe before credits) is less than $2,000, you need Form 8812 to claim the refundable portion. This form is what allows you to get money back even beyond what you paid in taxes. Take your documents back and specifically ask your preparer to check if you qualify for the Additional Child Tax Credit using Form 8812.

But how can a December baby count as living with you for half the year? That doesn't make any sense mathematically. Is this some weird tax loophole?

It's not a loophole - it's actually how the IRS rules work! For tax purposes, a child born at any time during the tax year is considered to have lived with you for the entire year. So even though your December baby was only physically with you for 11 days, the IRS treats it as if they lived with you for all 365 days of 2022. This is specifically stated in IRS Publication 972. The "more than half the year" test is automatically met for any child born during the tax year, regardless of the birth date.