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The child tax credit part of Biden's American Rescue Plan Act will begin making payments to families on July 15. Photo: Getty Images.
The child tax credit part of Biden's American Rescue Plan Act will begin making payments to families on July 15. Photo: Getty Images.

Mark your calendars: July 15 is when Biden’s child tax credit becomes a reality

Checks will then go out to families on the 15th of every month unless it is a weekend or holiday.

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Potentially one of the most transformative parts of President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act will become a reality for 39 million families across the U.S. starting on July 15.

On May 17, Biden’s administration announced July 15 as the start date for payments part of the new, revamped child tax credit.

As part of the American Rescue Plan, the child tax credit not only saw its eligibility expand to include more families, but also upped the amount of money they can get per child. For every child five and under, families will receive $3,600, and for each one between six and 17, the amount is $3,000.

Rather than receiving a lump sum come tax time, half of the payments for families will be monthly, between $250 and $300 to spread out the benefit.

According to NBC News, 80% of families that qualify already have it set up to get direct deposits. The 20% that don’t will receive their payments via check or debit card.

The amounts are phased out for individuals making more than $75,000 a year and married couples making more than $150,000.

It is a potentially transformational expansion because of the amount of working-class families set to benefit from the credit should they take advantage of it.

As mentioned in Business Insider, many of those families are also Black and Latino, and they’re set to benefit the most. That’s especially important considering the COVID-19 pandemic hit Black and Latino communities across the U.S. harder than most — as many in those communities held down essential jobs to keep the country on its feet during the pandemic’s worst days.

In remarks about the rollout on May 17 from the White House, President Joe Biden maintained the same message to working-class families as the one he sent when passing his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act.

“Help is here,” he said.

But his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill may not be the only place the new-form child tax credit will live. The president is also pushing for the passage of a $1.8 trillion economic and education relief package, called the American Families Plan.

As part of that bill in its current form, the child tax credit program will extend until 2025.

There was also a push from Democratic legislators in both chambers of Congress, including Rep. Ritchie Torres and Sen. Cory Booker, to make the new-and-improved program permanent.

This article is part of Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project among more than 20 news organizations focused on economic mobility in Philadelphia. Read all of our reporting at brokeinphilly.org.

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