It’s coming.  We all feel it.  Once the year changes, you feel like you have a world of time, and then before you know it, it’s April 17^th, Tax Day.

One important thing to remember this ominous weekend is to apply for your adoption tax credit if you finalized your adoption in 2017.

Created 20 years ago, the adoption tax credit helps defray the costs of adoption and is often a crucial factor in whether or not a family can adopt.  Through the hard work of many adoption advocates, including the Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys, the adoption tax credit was saved in the final tax reform bill.

Here are a few technical details about the tax credit:

• The credit that is allowed for an adoption of a child with special needs in 2017 is $13,570.
• The maximum credit allowed for other adoptions in 2017 is the amount of qualified adoption expenses up to $13,570.
• The available adoption credit begins to phase out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $203,540, and is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $243,540 or more.
• The maximum credit for 2018 will be $13,840 per child.
• The credit will begin to phase out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $207,580, and will be completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $247,580 and above.

More information on the tax credit is available at www.irs.gov and information on the successful advocacy efforts is available at www.adoptiontaxcredit.org (Save the Adoption Tax Credit)

Hopefully this information helps as we go into the tax weekend, and this credit helps with the cost of adoption for your family and many families for years to come. Good Luck!