Proving Relationship
Remember that one of the requirements to claim the EITC and CTC is relationship; the taxpayer must be related to qualifying child either by blood or marriage, or through legal adoption, foster care, or a custody order. The IRS recognizes a number of relationships, including biological children, step-children, nieces and nephews, and siblings. For a complete list of qualified relationships, click here.
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Once you have determined that you have a qualifying relationship to the child, the next step is to gather the documents needed to prove your relationship. The most common document that is used is a birth certificate or sequence of birth certificates that links you to the child.
Click the link if the child is your...
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If your relationship to the child you wish to claim is not listed here, they are not considered a qualifying child. If you mistakenly claimed a child who did not qualify, click here for next steps.
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For a an official IRS check-list of acceptable documents click here.
BIOLOGICAL CHILDREN:
The child's birth certificate is usually the best way to prove your relationship to your child.
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A birth certificate will always list the child's name and their mother's name unless a new birth certificate was made upon adoption of the child.
If you (the taxpayer) are the child's mother, you will likely only need to provide your child's birth certificate.
If you are the child's father, you may or may not be listed on the birth certificate. If you are, the child's birth certificate is sufficient.
If you are NOT listed as the father on your child's birth certificate but you are the child's BIOLOGICAL father, a paternity test can be used to establish your relationship to the child.
STEP-CHILDREN:
If you are the child's step-parent and have not legally adopted the child, you can establish your relationship to the child by providing the child's birth certificate that lists the child's parent and a marriage certificate that establishes your marriage to the child's parent.
If you are no longer married to the child's parent, a certificate of divorce or a death certificate showing you as the surviving spouse can be used. Please note that a marriage certificate or proof a legal common law marriage is required. You cannot claim the child of an unmarried partner for tax purposes.
ADOPTED CHILDREN:
If you (the taxpayer) are an adoptive parent, you are likely listed on the child's adoptive birth certificate. The amended birth certificate can be requested from the state where the adoption was finalized just like a regular birth certificate.
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Note that, if your adoption has not been finalized, there will be no new birth certificate issued. Instead, follow the directions for FOSTER children, below. If you are a child's court-appointed GUARDIAN, different rules may apply. for more information, click HERE.
FOSTER CHILDREN: Foster children are only eligible if they were place with you by an "authorized placement agency" or a court order. An authorized placement agency includes a tribal government or a local government agency. A copy of your authorization from the placement agency or a court order will satisfy the documentation requirement. If you have neither of these, click here for alternatives.
GRANDCHILDREN: The best way to prove your relationship to your grandchild is a copy of the child's birth certificate showing the child's parent who is your child AND a copy of your child's (the qualifying child's parent) birth certificate that shows them as the parent of the qualifying child is the most common way to establish your status as the child's grandparent.
If your child is not listed as the parent of the qualifying child on the child's birth certificate (or you are not listed on your child's birth certificate), you may provide a court order recognizing you as the qualifying child's grandparent, legal adoption papers that recognize you as the child's grandparent or adoptive parent, or a DNA record that establishes you as the child's grandparent.
SIBLINGS: Establishing your relationship to a sibling is usually accomplished by providing your birth certificate and your sibling's birth certificate which shows you share a parent.
Note that you only need to share one parent to be considered siblings. If your shared parent is not listed on one of your birth certificates, a paternity test can be used to establish your or your siblings relationship to your father.
NIECE/NEPHEW:
Similarly to grandparents, you will need to provide proof of two relationships to show your relationship to your nieces and nephews. .
First you will have to provide evidence that your niece/nephew is the child of your sibling. This is usually accomplished using the child's birth certificate that lists your sibling as the child's parent. Next you will have to prove your relationship to your sibling by following the instructions in the section above.
If your niece/nephew is not your siblings biological child, you can provide the documents listed above for non-biological children. If your sibling is not listed on the child's birth certificate but they are the biological father of the child, a paternity test can be used.
How do I?...
... get a birth certificate?
Contact the state where the birth certificate was originally issued. Click here for links to the appropriate contact information for each U.S. state or territory.
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... obtain legal adoption?
If the adoption of your child has been finalized:
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Click here for more information.
For Oregon-specific information, click here.
When a child has been placed with you but an adoption has not yet been finalized, a court record can be obtained from the state or local court where the adoption took place. To request records regarding an adoption in Oregon, click here.
... get a paternity test?
You may request a paternity test from your healthcare provider. Alternatively, you may order a legal paternity test from an accredited laboratory. At-home paternity tests are likely NOT acceptable.
... obtain marriage records?
If you were married in the United States, the record of your marriage license is kept at the county record office where the marriage license was filed. You can usually retrieve certified copies from your county courthouse for a small fee.
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If you do not have a US marriage license, please click here.
... guardianship records?
In Oregon, you must obtain these records from the local court that appointed the guardianship. To find contact information on a local court in Oregon, click here. For more information on guardianships in Oregon click here .
...look for help if English is not my first language?
If you are requesting documents from government agencies, or any social servicer agency, we encourage you to ask for an interpreter.
We also encourage you to contact a culturally specific organization, they may be able to help with language services to help you understand.