The bill tightens and standardizes SSN documentation to reduce improper credit payments and simplify administration, but it risks excluding some eligible taxpayers (notably noncitizen/ITIN holders) and creating short-term delays and extra administrative burdens.
Low-income families and taxpayers will face a single, clearer SSN documentation standard between the IRS and SSA, reducing improper Child Tax Credit/EITC payments and simplifying eligibility checks to improve program integrity and tax administration.
Low-income families — including children and some noncitizen immigrants or ITIN holders — may lose access to the Child Tax Credit and EITC if they or their dependents lack an SSA-issued SSN, reducing benefits for eligible households.
Taxpayers who must obtain SSA-issued SSNs before filing (particularly low-income households) may face delays or barriers that reduce timely claims for credits starting in tax year 2026.
Narrowing acceptable identification could increase audit or denial notices and raise administrative burden and compliance costs for both taxpayers and the IRS during the transition.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires that taxpayers and qualifying children use Social Security Administration–issued Social Security numbers (as newly defined in the tax code) to claim the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit. Replaces broader references to taxpayer identification numbers with this specific SSN requirement and updates two procedural code cross-references. The change takes effect for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.
Introduced January 28, 2025 by Clay Higgins · Last progress January 28, 2025