What income adjustments are applied to the Earned Income Tax Credit?

Created by Harendra Singh Rathore, Modified on Sun, 05 Feb 2023 at 09:07 PM by Harendra Singh Rathore

If you’re considered a low-income earner, you may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). This tax break is refundable, which means it can lower your tax bill and increase your refund amount. Each year, the income requirements to qualify for the EITC are adjusted to account for inflation.

In 2021, the EITC income requirements were slightly different, due to expanded benefits that helped extend this credit to more Americans.

Here’s how the income requirements compare between 2021 and 2022 if you’re filing as single, head of household, married filing separately, or as a widow:

Number of dependents	2021 Income Cap	2022 Income Cap
0	$21,430	$16,480
1	$42,158	$43,492
2	$47,915	$49,399
3 or more	$51,464	$53,057

Here are the 2021 and 2022 EITC income threshold amounts for married, joint filers:

Number of dependents	2021 Income Cap	2022 Income Cap
0	$27,380	$22,610
1	$48,108	$49,622
2	$53,865	$55,529
3 or more	$57,414	$59,187

Normally, EITC income thresholds increase year-to-year to account for inflation. While this is true for 2022, the expanded EITC benefits filers without children received in 2021 expired, lowering the income threshold closer to pre-pandemic amounts.

If you do qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit, you can receive between $560 and $6,935, depending on the number of dependents you claim.

Number of dependents	Maximum Credit
0	$560
1	$3,733
2	$6,164
3 or more	$6,935