This tax break returns to qualified individuals a portion of the taxes they paid. In cases where a taxpayer's bill is small, the credit can even produce a tax refund.
Many people think the credit is available only to parents.
But the amount the Internal Revenue Service will give back is greater for eligible low-wage taxpayers with kids. Filing for the credit can be confusing, however, especially for people sorting through child custody and foster care issues. Here are a couple of tips to make filing for the earned income credit a little easier for taxpayers in these situations. Child custody arrangements All taxpayers claiming credits based on the children they are raising must take into account each child's age, relationship to the taxpayer and where the child lived. The residency rule causes problems for some taxpayers who share child custody.