GREENSBORO, N.C. — Is the government paying out another Child Tax Credit payment to parents this month?
Well, the answer is yes and no. Let’s explain.
Facebook posts have been going around that shows a Google answer about the Child Tax Credit payments. There is a highlighted section:
These amounts were paid out on the 15th of the month from July to December with a final Child Tax Credit payment to come in April of 2022.
Down at the bottom of the post, the Facebook user writes: Watch for that April payment, it's coming.
The comment makes it seem like you're getting another payment round, but that's not really the case.
“There is not another Advanced Child Tax Credit payment coming. Normally you would just get your Child Tax Credit when you filed your taxes and it's different this year. You got half of it early and the other half when you file your tax return,” said Ryan Dodson, Liberty Tax Services.
The key here, the "payment" in April of 2022 is not mailed to you but credited to you when you file your taxes and claim the credit, which in many cases results in a refund.
Let me stop right there for a minute. Your refund will probably be smaller this year because you got part of your refund in July, August, September, October, November, and December -- in the form of the Advanced Child Tax payments.
Don't forget, Tax Day is not April 15, 2022, it's April 18, 2022, the Monday after Easter. You don't want to miss the deadline, especially if you owe money.
“If you owe $4,000 and you decide not to file because you don't have the money, that will be $5,000 once you get to September, so the best thing you can do even if you can't pay, is to file that tax return anyway,” said Dodson.
Remember, an extension is an extension to file, not an extension to pay.