To Qualify for EITC you must:

Have earned income, and
Have valid a social security number.

To claim EITC, the tax filer, his or her spouse, and qualifying children must have a valid Social Security Number. Tax filers cannot qualify if their SSN states "NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT." Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINS) and Adoption Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ATINS) are also ineligible for the credit.

• Investment income limited to $2900.
• Filling status cannot be "married filing separately."
• Generally must be a US citizen or resident alien all year.
• Cannot file form 2555 or 2555-EZ (or related foreign income).
• You need to have worked and have income as follows

Next Tax Year 2007:

Earned income and adjusted gross income (AGI) must each be less than:

• $37,783 ($39,783 married filing jointly) with two or more
  qualifying children
• $33,241 ($35,241 married filing jointly) with one qualifying
  child
• 12,590 ($14,590 married filing jointly) with no qualifying
  children.

Tax Year 2007 maximum credit:

• $4,716 with two or more qualifying children
• $2,853 with one qualifying child
• $428 with no qualifying children
• Investment income must be $2,900 or less for the year

A"qualifying child" may enable a taxpayer to claim several tax benefits, such as head of household filing status, the exemption for a dependent, the child tax credit, the child and dependent care credit, and the earned income tax credit. Prior to 2005, each of these items defined a qualifying child differently.

Common errors:

• Taxpayer claims a child who is not eligible
• Married taxpayers who should file as married file separately as single or head of household
• Taxpayers or qualifying children with invalid social security numbers