State credits
Wisconsin earned income credit
Wisconsin sets its share by the number of children, from 4% to 34%, and pays nothing to workers without a child.
Wisconsin and federal earned income credit calculator
Credits for tax year 2025, head of household, 3 qualifying children
$13,854
| Federal EITC | $7,904 |
| Wisconsin Earned Income Credit | $2,687 |
| Child tax credit, lowers your tax | $38 |
| Additional child tax credit, refundable | $3,225 |
Phase-out: each extra dollar lowers the federal credit; federal maximum $8,046, nothing from $61,555.
$3,337 of child tax credit is lost: it exceeds your federal tax and the refundable cap.
Rules of the Wisconsin creditThe Wisconsin Earned Income Credit is a refundable share of the federal credit that depends on the number of qualifying children: 4% with one child, 11% with two, and 34% with three or more. A worker without a qualifying child receives nothing from Wisconsin. At the 2025 federal maximum, that gives $173 with one child, $787 with two and $2,736 with three or more, so a family of three children receives almost sixteen times as much as a family of one. The credit is claimed on Schedule EIC-A with Form 1 and follows the federal eligibility rules. Wisconsin also limits it when a household's investment income exceeds the federal limit, the same rule as the IRS. Publication 114 of the Department of Revenue explains it.
IRS and state rules read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
The Wisconsin credit in one table
| Name | Wisconsin Earned Income Credit |
| Form | Schedule EIC-A / Form 1 |
| Administered by | Wisconsin Department of Revenue |
| Tax year 2025 | 4% (1 child), 11% (2), 34% (3 or more) of the federal credit; none without a child |
| Tax year 2026 | 4% (1 child), 11% (2), 34% (3 or more) of the federal credit; none without a child |
| Refundable | refundable |
| ITIN filers | not accepted (same SSN rule as federal) |
| Worker without a qualifying child | no credit |
The weight of the third child
The federal credit itself rises little from the second to the third child, from $7,152 to $8,046 at the 2025 maximum, but Wisconsin's share jumps from 11% to 34%. The Department of Revenue Publication 114 gives examples.
Wisconsin credit by income, tax year 2025
| Earned income | No child | 1 child | 2 children | 3 or more |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000 | $0 | $68 | $221 | $769 |
| $10,000 | $0 | $136 | $441 | $1,534 |
| $15,000 | $0 | $173 | $661 | $2,299 |
| $20,000 | $0 | $173 | $787 | $2,736 |
| $25,000 | $0 | $162 | $748 | $2,616 |
| $30,000 | $0 | $130 | $632 | $2,258 |
| $40,000 | $0 | $67 | $400 | $1,542 |
| $50,000 | $0 | $3 | $169 | $826 |
| $60,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $109 |