(CNBC) On Saturday, the Senate voted to pass the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, which includes provisions that increase the child tax credit to $3,000 per child ages 6 to 17 and $3,600 annually for children under 6 for the tax year 2021.
And Americans with children under 18 may start receiving a portion of the new credit as early as this summer.
Under Saturday’s legislation, the IRS could start providing advances on the 2021 credit through periodic payments of $250 for school-aged children starting as early as July, depending on what the Treasury Department determines is workable. Under the proposed schedule, which could be as frequent as monthly, families could receive nearly half of their total child tax credit this year and then claim the remaining amount on their 2021 tax returns.