Illegal immigrants are barred from refundable tax credits, such as the earned income tax credit for lower-income workers, but a 1997 law enacting the child tax credit does not exclude them from collecting that separate benefit – and they sure are taking advantage! The Treasury Department says that in the 2010 filing year more than $4.2 billion in child credit refunds went to 2.3 million people who filed tax returns but didn’t have Social Security numbers proving they were citizens or legal workers, a four-fold increase over five years earlier!Conservatives on Capitol Hill are now pushing a proposal that would halt “free funds” to low-income illegal immigrant filers who take advantage of the child tax credit to receive government payments that average about $1,800. The proposal would require people filing tax returns to prove they’re legal workers, and if passed, would trim federal spending by about $10 billion over a decade. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada says that proposal unfairly “goes after the children of poor Hispanic workers” who are often U.S. citizens even when their parents aren’t.
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