If your child aged out of the $2,000 child credit, you’re not totally out of luck. You may qualify for the $500 credit for other dependents. The tax reform law doubled the child tax credit to $2,000 for each dependent who is age 16 or younger. It also raised the income phase-out thresholds for the break…AGIs over $400,000 for couples and $200,000 for all others. If your child was 17 or older on Dec. 31, 2018, you can’t take the child tax credit. But there is now a $500 credit for each dependent who is not a qualifying child. Think high school juniors and seniors, college students, disabled adult children or elderly parents that you care for. It is nonrefundable and begins to phase out under the same AGI thresholds as the child credit. You’re ready to fill out your 2018 return but haven’t yet received your W-2. What do you do? First, contact your employer and ask for a copy of the form. If you don’t receive it by the end of Feb., you can call IRS, which will send a letter to your employer. You’ll need the company’s name, address and phone number; dates of employment; and estimates of wages and tax withheld from your pay. Don’t file your return late. If you still haven’t received the W-2 by late March or early April, file your federal tax return without the W-2 and attach Form 4852. It’s a substitute W-2 form on which you estimate wages and income tax withheld to the best of your ability. Using a year-end pay stub will help with these estimates.

Tax Tips

by | Mar 21, 2019 | AGI, Dividends, Exemptions, Tax Credits | 0 comments