With summer vacations and school breaks around the corner, many parents are turning to day camps to keep their children active and supervised. Under the updated 2026 tax laws—specifically the provisions from the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA)—those camp expenses could lead to a significantly higher tax credit than in previous years.
Sending the Kids to Day Camp this Summer?
If your child is going to a summer day camp while you work, it may count as an expense toward the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit.
What to Know About the Adoption Tax Credit
If you adopt a child in 2023, you may qualify for a tax credit for related expenses. If your employer helped pay for the costs of an adoption, you may be able to exclude that income from tax. In 2023, the maximum adoption tax credit and exclusion on a combined basis is $15,950 per child.
What is IRS Letter 6419?
Taxpayers should have started receiving IRS Letter 6419, 2021 advance CTC, in January. The advance child tax credit payments letter helps taxpayers get the remainder of their 2021 tax credit. It includes the total amount of advance child tax credit payments taxpayers received in 2021 and the number of qualifying children used to calculate the advance payments.
Shared Custody and Advance Child Tax Credit Payments
Parents who share custody of their children may be confused about how the advance child tax credit payments are distributed. As such, the first step is to remember that these are advance payments of a tax credit that taxpayers expect to claim on their 2021 tax return. Understanding how the payments work will allow parents to unenroll, if they choose, and possibly avoid a possible tax bill when they file next year.