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Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking

Earned Income Tax Credit Campaign

The following information is provided by the DC Office of Tax and Revenue. 

Big changes are coming to the District Earned Income Tax Credit in 2024!

The District Earned Income Tax Credit (DC EITC) is a refundable credit for low and moderate-income workers. For individuals with qualifying children, the DC EITC is based on a percentage of the amount of the federal earned income tax credit (federal EIC) reported on an individual’s federal income tax return. For past years, the amount of the DC EITC was 40% of the amount of the federal EIC. For tax years 2022 - 2024, that percentage has been increased to 70% of the federal EIC.

For tax year 2024, individuals with qualifying children receiving the DC EITC will be paid differently than in the past. Starting with tax year 2024, the DC EITC refund is paid as a one-time payment that is included with your non-DC EITC refund. If your DC EITC refund is $1,200 or more, you may choose to have your DC EITC refund paid to you in 12 equal monthly payments instead of a one-time payment.

Please note: Electing to receive this credit in monthly payments may cause you to lose your Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or other federal benefits. For you to receive your monthly refund payments timely, it is important that you keep your address and banking information up to date with OTR throughout the year.

You can ensure your information is up-to-date by logging in to your MyTax.DC.gov account or by calling OTR’s Customer Service Administration at (202) 724-4829.

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The DC Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a special tax break, based on the federal EITC, designed specifically for low- and moderate-income workers. People who qualify for the EITC will pay less in taxes or even get cash back.

Who is eligible for the DC EITC?

  • Those District taxpayers who are allowed the Earned Income Tax Credit in filing their federal individual income tax return.
  • District taxpayers who meet all the eligibility requirements for the federal ETIC except that they file with an ITIN.
  • District taxpayers who do not have an EITC qualifying child for federal tax purposes and who were over the federal EITC income limit but are under the DC EITC income limit.
  • Taxpayers without a qualifying child must use the DC Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Worksheet for Filers Without a Qualifying Child to determine the DC EITC. You may need information from the federal instruction booklet concerning the Earned Income Credit to determine your eligibility for the DC Earned Income Tax Credit.
  • District taxpayers who are non-custodial parents and meet the criteria to claim the DC Non-Custodial Parent EITC.
  1. A District resident, and
  2. Between the ages of 18 and 30, and
  3. A parent of a minor child who does not live with the taxpayer, and
  4. A court has ordered the taxpayer to make childcare support payments, and
  5. The court order is in effect for 183 days during the year that the taxpayer is claiming the credit, and
  6. The payments were made through a government sponsored court collection unit and all the court payments were made by December 31.

What is the amount of the DC EITC?

  • District taxpayers who are allowed the Earned Income Tax Credit in filing their federal individual income tax return are allowed a DC EITC equal to 70 percent of the amount allowed by the Internal Revenue Service.
  • District taxpayers meet all the eligibility criteria to claim a federal Earned Income Tax Credit except that they file with an ITN are allowed a DC EITC equal to 70 percent of the amount that would have been allowed by the Internal Revenue Service.

Noncustodial District taxpayers who are required to pay child support and who otherwise qualify are allowed a DC EITC equal to 70 percent of the amount that would have been allowed by the Internal Revenue Service.

In addition to the DC EITC, some working families with children can benefit from the federal Child Tax Credit. The District government wants all eligible city residents to claim these valuable tax credits.

Resources

This information was last updated on January 28, 2025.