Credits · calculator
The adoption credit for 2026
A per-child credit for adoption expenses, part of which is now paid even when no income tax is owed.
Adoption credit estimate
Adoption credit
$15,000
$5,120 of it refundable
- Share kept after the phase-out100%
- Nonrefundable part (5-year carryforward)$9,880
Per child. For a child with special needs the full amount is allowed whatever the expenses.
The adoption credit covers qualified adoption expenses up to $17,670 per child for 2026 ($17,280 for 2025), under section 4.04 of Rev. Proc. 2025-32. Since 2025, Public Law 119-21 makes part of it refundable: up to $5,120 per child for 2026 ($5,000 for 2025) is paid even if you owe no income tax, while the rest reduces tax and can be carried forward for up to five years. The credit phases out evenly as modified AGI rises from $265,080 to $305,080; a family halfway through that range, at $285,080, with $20,000 of expenses gets $8,835. Qualified expenses are reasonable and necessary adoption fees, court costs, attorney fees and travel. For a child with special needs, as determined by a state, the full $17,670 is allowed whatever the actual expenses. Employer adoption assistance is excluded from income up to the same amount, but the same dollars cannot be used twice. The credit is claimed on Form 8839.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
2026 and 2025 figures
| Item | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum credit per child | $17,280 | $17,670 |
| Refundable portion per child | $5,000 | $5,120 |
| Phase-out starts at MAGI | $259,190 | $265,080 |
| Credit gone at MAGI | $299,190 | $305,080 |
How the phase-out is applied
The reduction is proportional over the $40,000 range: credit times the share of the range your modified AGI has not crossed. With $20,000 of expenses and $275,080 of modified AGI, a quarter of the range is crossed and $13,253 remains. Modified AGI is AGI plus excluded foreign income. The same range applies to the employer exclusion for adoption assistance.
Expenses that count
Qualified expenses are the reasonable and necessary costs directly related to the legal adoption of an eligible child: adoption fees, court costs, attorney fees and travel, including meals and lodging while away from home. Costs reimbursed by an employer under an adoption assistance program cannot be counted again for the credit, though the employer exclusion and the credit can be combined on different dollars up to the limit for each. The limit applies per child, not per year, so expenses spread over several years share one $17,670 ceiling.
Carryforward of the nonrefundable part
Credit above the refundable portion that your income tax cannot absorb carries forward for up to five years. A family with $17,000 of credit and $4,000 of income tax uses $4,000 against tax, receives up to $5,120 as a refund and carries the rest forward. Carried-forward amounts are never refundable later.
Using it with other family credits
An adopted child is a qualifying child for the child tax credit and the earned income credit once placed with you, and care costs can bring the dependent care credit. The refundable part of the adoption credit adds to the refund figured by the refund estimator.
Sources: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 inflation-adjusted items and 2025 items modified by Public Law 119-21 (October 9, 2025); IRS Rev. Proc. 2024-40: 2025 inflation-adjusted items; Public Law 119-21 (July 4, 2025), Title VII, Subtitle A: sections 70101 to 70120 and 70424 to 70425; IRS: Working Families Tax Cuts, provisions for individuals and workers, read on October 11, 2026.