For taxpayers who wish to opt out of the Advance CTC, it’s already too late to do so for the first payment, which should arrive on the 15th for most people. Some taxpayers may wish to opt out to avoid repaying excess CTC payments when they file their 2021 income taxes. The schedule for unenrollment and monthly Advance CTC payments is below:
Payment Month | Unenrollment Deadline | Payment Date |
July | 6/28/2021 | 7/15/2021 |
August | 8/2/2021 | 8/13/2021 |
September | 8/30/2021 | 9/15/2021 |
October | 10/4/2021 | 10/15/2021 |
November | 11/1/2021 | 11/15/2021 |
December | 11/29/2021 | 12/15/2021 |
If you miss the unenrollment deadline you will get the next scheduled advance payment until the IRS processes your request to unenroll. It may take up to seven days for the IRS to process your request. Be sure to check back after unenrolling! If you unenroll and change your mind, you will not be able to re-enroll until late September 2021 according to the latest guidance from the IRS.
An important note for married / joint filers: unenrolling applies to individuals only. Your spouse will also need to unenroll. If one of you fails to unenroll, you will get half of the joint payment you were supposed to receive with your spouse.
If you wish to opt out and you have not already authenticated your identity with the IRS, you will need to do that first. The opt out portal requires the use of the IRS’ ID.me app if you are not authenticated.
Click here to visit ID.me and create an account.
Click here to access the IRS’ Child Tax Credit Update Portal.