June 21st is Child Tax Credit Awareness Day

The Child Tax Credit, part of the American Rescue Plan, is here to help families raising children make ends meet. Experts estimate the new Child Tax Credit has the potential to cut child poverty in half. We need your help to spread the word and raise awareness of this major tax relief for working families.

On June 21st – Child Tax Credit Awareness Day – we want to deliver three key messages:

1. The Child Tax Credit provides major tax relief for nearly all working families.
   • All working families will get the full credit if they make up to $150,000 for a couple or $112,500 for a family with a single parent (also called head of household).
   • The Child Tax Credit has been expanded to $3,000 per child 6-17 years old and $3,600 per child under 6.
   • Roughly 39 million households – covering 65 million children (nearly 90% of children in the United States) – will automatically receive the new child tax credit. Starting on July 15th and through the rest of the calendar year, payments will be monthly (via direct deposit for 80% of families and through the mail for the others) – at $250 per child between 6-17 or $300 per child under 6.
   • The IRS has launched a simplified online tool which will allow families not automatically enrolled in the program to receive the Child Tax Credit – more information at ChildTaxCredit.gov.
2. President Biden’s American Families Plan calls for extending this for years and years. The new Child Tax Credit enacted in the American Rescue Plan is only for 2021. That is why President Biden strongly believes that we should extend the new Child Tax Credit for years and years to come. That’s what he proposes in his American Families Plan.
3. Easy sign up for low-income families to cut child poverty in half. Low-income families with children are eligible for this crucial tax relief – including those who have not made enough money to be required to file taxes. If a couple makes under $24,800, a head of household makes under $18,650, or a single filer makes under $12,400, and they have not filed their taxes, there is a simple, easy tool to sign up for the Child Tax Credit. Learn more at at ChildTaxCredit.gov.

Help us spread the word! Use June 21st as the occasion to do events, calls, social media to elevate the Child Tax Credit, or to announce future efforts to promote awareness and sign-ups for the Child Tax Credit.

June 21st will be a day for elected officials, local leaders, faith organizations, community groups and organizations that fight for children to share their plans for raising awareness of the Child Tax Credit far and wide. National and community organizations from the United Way to MomsRising are working to organize events and media amplification. Here are some ways to engage on June 21st and in the weeks and months following:

• Host or join events, or Zoom calls, at family centers, houses of worship, community centers and other places that families visit, and pitch to local media.
• Write/place an op-ed about the importance of the Child Tax Credit in your regional or local media outlet.
• Participate in a webinar with faith and community leaders to tell them about the Child tax Credit and how they can ensure access to the Child Tax Credit for members of their congregations/communities.
• Partner with school districts, education leaders, and childcare centers to share information with parents.
• Raise awareness via social media (post, tweet, partner with an advocacy org for an IG LIVE).
• Join local and national broadcast to discuss the impacts of the CTC and how constituents can access and learn more.
• Partner with local sports teams and celebrities to raise awareness of the Child Tax Credit through their social media channels, events, and other engagements.