Adoption tax credit
Hello, I hope you are doing well.
My wife and I are in the process of adopting a child. We are in the waiting stage right now and do not have a child's name yet.
We have adoption expenses from 2022 and 2023 that we would like to claim using the adoption tax credit because (from my understanding) this is the only year to claim the 2022 expenses.
Since we don't have the name of the child yet, how should we fill out that page? Should we put "n/a" for the child's name?
Thank you very much!
Answers
-
Hello, NoKingButChrist!
That is a great question!
When you can claim expenses for adopting a child depends on whether it's a domestic or foreign adoption. See the two tables on page 3 of the link below:
Later on that same page, the IRS states to leave blank lines that you are unable to complete if the adoption is not yet successful. Our software requires the first and last name. Thus, for the first and last name, you can enter "NA".
0 -
Thank you so much!
0 -
A question on this thread as I prepare for 2025 - we are in a similar situation where we paid expenses in 2024 and our domestic adoption is ongoing with no child identified. Since the adoption is domestic, we will claim 2024 expenses on 2025's return.
I'm assuming the only fields required would be a child name of "NA" or "UNKNOWN" and the birth date can remain blank? If the birth date is left blank, is there a data point of the return being accepted by the IRS when e-filing? I've read elsewhere that an approximate DOB may be required.
0 -
Hi idonahoe,
You may enter UNKNOWN as the first and last name. A birth date and tax ID is not required. Make sure you select the adoption is not finalized.1
