By situation
Earned income credit without a qualifying child
Workers without a qualifying child can claim a small federal credit, and in several states a much larger state one. The age rule is where most people miss out.
Earned income credit without a qualifying child
Credits for tax year 2025, single, no qualifying child
$974
| Federal EITC | $649 |
| Maine Earned Income Credit | $325 |
| Child tax credit, lowers your tax | $0 |
| Additional child tax credit, refundable | $0 |
Plateau: the federal credit is at its maximum; federal maximum $649, nothing from $19,104.
Rules of the Maine creditA worker without a qualifying child can claim the federal earned income credit for 2025 if earned income and AGI are both below $19,104, or $26,214 on a joint return, and if the worker or the spouse is at least 25 and under 65 at the end of the year. The credit is 7.65% of earned income, up to $649 at $8,490 of earnings, and falls by 7.65% of income above $10,620. You must also have lived in the United States more than half the year and not be the dependent or qualifying child of someone else. For 2026 the maximum is $664. Several states are more generous: Maine pays 50% of the federal amount and Vermont 100%, while California, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey and Colorado accept workers younger than 25. Wisconsin pays nothing without a child.
No qualifying child: does your age allow the credit?
Federal credit 2025, single, $9,000
$0 (age)
| Federal age range | 25 to 64 |
| Amount if the age test were met | $649 |
| States that accept your age | 6: CA, CO, IL, ME, MD, NJ |
IRS and state rules read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Federal amounts without a child, 2025
| Earned income | Single | Joint return | Maine | Vermont |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $3,000 | $231 | $231 | $116 | $231 |
| $6,000 | $461 | $461 | $231 | $461 |
| $8,490 | $649 | $649 | $325 | $649 |
| $10,000 | $649 | $649 | $325 | $649 |
| $12,000 | $542 | $649 | $271 | $542 |
| $15,000 | $312 | $649 | $156 | $312 |
| $18,000 | $83 | $626 | $42 | $83 |
States that lower the age
| State | Minimum age without a child |
|---|---|
| California | 18 |
| Colorado | 19 |
| Illinois | 18, no upper age |
| Maine | 18 |
| Maryland | 18 |
| New Jersey | 18 |
In these states the credit is computed as if the federal age test were met, so a worker of 20 receives the state share of what the federal credit would have been. The comparison page has every state.
Who counts as a worker without a qualifying child
It is not only people without children. A parent whose children are 19 or older and not students, a parent whose child lived with the other parent more than half the year, or a grandparent whose grandchild is claimed by the child's parent all claim the credit, if at all, in this column. The age range applies to you or your spouse: on a joint return, one spouse aged 25 to 64 is enough.
The income window
The window is narrow: the credit is at its maximum only between $8,490 and $10,620 of earnings for a single filer in 2025, and ends at $19,104. A full-time worker at the federal minimum wage earns about $15,080 in a year, already in the phase-out. The IRS publication lists the rules for this column in its chapter 3.