Georgia families will be getting extra money this summer... and many don’t know it

ATLANTA — Parents could soon see some extra money in their checking accounts, as the IRS gets ready to start paying out child tax credits passed by the last round of COVID-19 stimulus.

You’ll receive $3,600 for each child under the age of six and $3,000 for each child from age six to 17.

“We fully expect to launch in July,” IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said this week.

That was enough to make metro Atlanta parents like Katie Jackson celebrate.

“That’s amazing,” Jackson told Channel 2′s Justin Wilfon.

Rettig announced this week that the IRS will send more money to families starting this summer, this time in the form of bigger child tax credits.

“Not only does it give you a little financial security through everything that’s going on right now, but it’s going to allow us to be able to afford our regular bills and be able to have a cushion,” Jackson said.

Katie and her husband have a 4-year-old daughter with another daughter expected soon. That means they should receive $7,200 in child tax credits.

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“I wasn’t really expecting it to get that high and I’m glad our baby comes before that happens, so she can apply pretty much, because it’s going to help a lot,” Jackson said.

The IRS will begin delivering the enhanced child tax credits in the form of monthly payments starting in July.

“So many of us have trouble budgeting when we get a lump sum. You see that money coming every month, it can go directly to expenses that you have taking care of your family,” said Channel 2 consumer advisor Clark Howard.

The bigger child tax credits are scheduled to last for only the 2021 tax year, as the country and families continue to recover from the pandemic.

“Giving money to people who have children who are younger, is something that’s been talked about for a long time. But coronavirus exposed how much more difficulty there is getting by when you have young children,” Howard said.

But now families all across Georgia will get more help from a part of the stimulus package some of them didn’t even know about.

“I heard nothing about it,” Jackson told Wilfon.

Those child tax credits replace and enhance the old child tax credits, which were only $2,000 per child.

While most families will receive these checks, not every family will get the big tax credits. The credits will be smaller for parents at higher income levels.

If you’re a single parent making more than $75,000 or a married couple making more than $150,000 those payments will start phasing out.

Channel 2's Clark Howard looks at how upcoming stimulus payments will affect the economy

Cox Media Group