State EITCs are meant to help people and families struggling on low incomes. People who are undocumented often face steep barriers to participating in the economy, making it harder to provide for themselves and their families.

In DC, 90 percent of people who are undocumented identify as Black, Latino, or Asian. This is a federal level rule, and because most states rely on federal parameters and set their local EITCs as a percentage of the federal credit, this exclusion flows through to local credits. They cannot claim the credit because either they or other members of their “tax unit” do not have an SSN. The federal EITC is another program denied to people, including many workers who are undocumented, who meet income eligibility targets. Today, unemployment insurance continues to exclude many workers, including immigrants who are undocumented. For example, when Congress established a permanent unemployment insurance program during the Great Depression, it excluded farm and domestic work, leaving most Black workers ineligible. The District prides itself as a welcoming city-one that recognizes and respects the vital role that immigrants play in shaping DC’s culture, communities, and economy as friends and family, neighbors, artists, entrepreneurs, essential workers, and more-and its policies should reflect that.ĭC’s EITC Should Be More Inclusive to Further Advance Racial Equityīecause of a long history of systemic racism and economic exclusion, many people struggling to make ends meet are denied access to safety net programs. These workers and their families have been excluded from the credit for too long and stand to miss out even more after the major multi-year expansion to the value of the DC EITC adopted last year. DC can make this tax credit available to those filing with ITINs to ensure all workers who must make ends meet with low pay are able to make life better for their families and share in the District’s recovery and prosperity, regardless of their immigration status. Undocumented workers are ineligible for SSNs, but many file their taxes with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). But the District can and should set its own rules. This longstanding discrimination built into the federal credit flows through to the District’s EITC, excluding many workers and families who would otherwise be eligible based on their income. Under federal rules, the EITC can only go to working households where all members (adult taxpayers and qualifying children) have a valid Social Security Number (SSN). Currently, it excludes roughly more than 5,000 low-paid working households because they have at least one person who is undocumented.

Last year, DC lawmakers expanded the credit to make it the most generous in the nation, but it is not the most inclusive. It is claimed at tax time and helps people pay for expenses like rent, food, and child care. Modeled after the federal tax credit by the same name, DC’s EITC goes to families and individuals earning low and moderate incomes to help them keep more of what they earn and meet basic needs. The DC Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a powerful tool for advancing racial, gender, and economic equity. Corrected on Apto reflect the seven states that have extended the EITC to income-eligible workers who file their taxes with an ITIN-not six.

2021 eic table