2019 Adoption Credit
For 2019, the Adoption Credit figures are $14,080 (Maximum credit), $211,160 (Phase-out threshold) and $251,160 (Fully phased out).
Effective 2019-01-01Source: Rev. Proc. 2018-57 (IRS)Verified 2026-09-03
Compared with 2018
| Item | 2018 | 2019 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum credit | $13,810 | $14,080 | +$270 (+2.0%) |
| Phase-out threshold | $207,140 | $211,160 | +$4,020 (+1.9%) |
| Fully phased out | $247,140 | $251,160 | +$4,020 (+1.6%) |
Who it applies to
Taxpayers who adopted an eligible child in 2019 or who are claiming the credit for adoption expenses paid in earlier years
What changed this year, and why
For 2019, the maximum Adoption Credit increased to $14,080 per eligible child, up from $13,810 in 2018. The income phase-out range also shifted upward.
Common questions
- What is the maximum Adoption Credit for 2019?
- The maximum credit is $14,080 per eligible child. For a child with special needs, the full $14,080 is allowed regardless of actual expenses. For other adoptions, the credit covers qualified adoption expenses up to $14,080.
- At what income level does the Adoption Credit begin to phase out?
- The credit begins to phase out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income above $211,160. In 2018, the phase-out began at $207,140.
- At what income level is the Adoption Credit completely phased out?
- The credit is fully phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $251,160 or more. In 2018, that ceiling was $247,140.
The credit shrinks as income rises
The 2019 adoption credit begins to phase out once your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $211,160. As your income rises above that threshold, the credit amount is reduced proportionally. The phase-out range continues until your modified adjusted gross income reaches $251,160 or more, at which point the credit is completely eliminated. This means taxpayers with income between $211,160 and $251,160 receive only a partial credit, while those earning $251,160 or more cannot claim any adoption credit at all. The maximum credit before any phase-out applies is $14,080 per eligible child.
This amount begins to phase out if you have modified adjusted gross income in excess of $211,160 and is completely phased out for modified adjusted gross income of $251,160 or more.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
The credit and the employer exclusion cannot cover the same expense
A taxpayer adopting an eligible child may receive employer-provided adoption benefits that are excluded from income and may also claim the adoption credit. The total amount available for each benefit in 2019 is $14,080 per child. However, the same dollar of qualified adoption expense cannot be used to support both benefits. If employer-paid or reimbursed adoption expenses are excluded from wages, those amounts must be subtracted before figuring the credit. The remaining qualified expenses, if any, can then be applied toward the credit. Taxpayers must complete Part III of Form 8839, which handles employer-provided benefits, before completing Part II, which figures the credit, to avoid double-counting the same expenses.
But, you can't claim both a credit and exclusion for the same expenses.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Unused credit carries forward
When your adoption credit exceeds your tax liability for 2019, the unused portion does not disappear. You may carry the remaining credit forward to future tax years. The carryforward period lasts up to 5 years or until the credit is fully used, whichever comes first. This allows taxpayers to benefit from the full $14,080 maximum credit even when current-year tax liability is insufficient. To determine the carryforward amount, you must use the Adoption Credit Carryforward Worksheet provided in the instructions. If you have unused credit to carry forward to 2020, keep this worksheet because you will need it to calculate your credit in the following year. The carryforward continues annually until the credit is exhausted or the 5-year period expires.
If Form 8839, line 15, is smaller than line 14, you may have an unused credit to carry forward to the next 5 years or until used, whichever comes first.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Expenses paid before a domestic adoption is final wait a year
If you pay qualified adoption expenses in a year before the domestic adoption becomes final, you cannot claim the credit in that same year. Instead, you must wait and take the credit in the year after the year you made the payment. For example, if you paid adoption expenses in 2018 but the adoption did not become final until 2019, you would claim the credit for those 2018 expenses on your 2019 tax return. This rule applies to domestic adoptions of U.S. children. Once the adoption becomes final, expenses paid in the year of finality can be claimed in that same year, and expenses paid in any year after finality are claimed in the year of payment. The timing rule ensures that pre-finality expenses are deferred to the following tax year, while expenses paid during or after the year the adoption is finalized follow the normal timing.
Any year before the year the adoption becomes final* The year after the year of the payment. The year the adoption becomes final The year the adoption becomes final. Any year after the year the adoption becomes final The year of the payment.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
The form that claims it, and the order its parts are filled in
To claim the adoption credit, you must complete Form 8839, and the form has a specific order for filling out its parts. If you received employer-provided adoption benefits under a written qualified adoption assistance program, those benefits are excluded from your income, but qualified adoption expenses do not include amounts reimbursed by your employer. Because of this exclusion, you must complete Form 8839, Part III, before you can figure the credit in Part II. Part III calculates the employer-provided adoption benefits exclusion, and only after determining what portion of your expenses were covered by employer benefits can you calculate the credit for any remaining qualified expenses in Part II. There is an exception for children with special needs, which may allow a credit even when expenses are less than the maximum or when no expenses were paid. The form ensures that employer benefits and the credit are properly coordinated so you do not receive a double tax benefit for the same expenses.
For purposes of calculating the adoption credit in Part II, qualified adoption expenses don't include expenses reimbursed by an employer under a written qualified adoption assistance program (see Employer-Provided Adoption Benefits). For this reason, you must complete Form 8839, Part III, before you can figure the credit, if any, in Part II. But see Child with special needs.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
What happens if the adoption falls through
If you paid qualified adoption expenses attempting to adopt a U.S. child but the adoption was unsuccessful, you can still claim the credit for those expenses. The IRS treats expenses from an unsuccessful adoption attempt in the same manner as expenses paid for adoptions that were not final by the end of the year. This means you follow the timing rules for domestic adoptions where the adoption has not yet become final. For example, if you paid expenses in 2018 during an unsuccessful adoption attempt, you would claim the credit for those expenses in 2019, the year after the payment. This rule applies specifically to attempts to adopt U.S. citizens or residents. The policy recognizes that adoption attempts involve substantial costs even when they do not result in a completed adoption, and allows families to receive the credit for those qualified expenses despite the unsuccessful outcome.
Unsuccessful adoption. If you paid qualified adoption expenses in an attempt to adopt a U.S. child and the attempt was unsuccessful, treat those expenses in the same manner as expenses you paid for adoptions not final by the end of the year.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Whether the credit is refundable, or only reduces what you owe
The adoption credit for 2019 is nonrefundable, meaning it can reduce your federal income tax liability to zero but any excess credit beyond that amount cannot be refunded to you as a cash payment. This distinction matters because a refundable credit would pay out even if you owe no tax, whereas the adoption credit only offsets taxes you actually owe. However, the credit is not necessarily lost if you cannot use the full amount in one year. The IRS instructions direct taxpayers to complete the Credit Limit Worksheet on Form 8839 to determine the portion of the credit they may claim for 2019, and any unused portion can be carried forward to future tax years. Taxpayers must track the credit through the carryforward worksheet provided in the instructions. For 2019, the maximum adoption credit available per eligible child is $14,080, though the amount phases out for higher-income taxpayers.
Complete the credit limit worksheet to figure the limit of your nonrefundable adoption credit.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
What counts as a qualified adoption expense
The test is purpose, not category. A cost counts only if it is reasonable and necessary and its principal purpose is the legal adoption of an eligible child, so the same dollar spent for a different reason is out however adoption-related it looks. In practice that captures the costs the adoption itself forces on you: what the agency charges, what the lawyer charges, what the court charges, what it costs to travel and stay overnight away from home for the adoption, and re-adopting a foreign child once you are back. The exclusions answer one of two questions. Did somebody else already pay for it? Funds from a state, local or federal program, an employer reimbursement, and a cost already taken as a deduction or credit somewhere else in the tax law are all out, because the credit exists to relieve money you were actually out of pocket, once. Is it a qualifying adoption at all? Surrogacy arrangements, adopting the child of your spouse, and anything that breaks state or federal law fail for that reason instead. Where the line falls decides how much of the 2019 credit, up to $14,080 per child, you can actually claim.
Qualified Adoption Expenses Qualified adoption expenses are reasonable and necessary expenses directly related to, and for the principal purpose of, the legal adoption of an eligible child. Qualified adoption expenses include: • Adoption fees, • Attorney fees, • Court costs, • Travel expenses (including meals and lodging) while away from home, and • Re-adoption expenses relating to the adoption of a foreign child. Qualified adoption expenses don't include expenses: • For which you received funds under any state, local, or federal program; • That violate state or federal law; • For carrying out a surrogate parenting arrangement; • For the adoption of your spouse's child; • Reimbursed by your employer or otherwise; or • Allowed as a credit or deduction under any other provision of federal income tax law.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Adopting your stepchild does not qualify for the credit
Adopting your spouse's child does not qualify for the 2019 Adoption Credit. Expenses paid to adopt a stepchild are specifically excluded from the definition of qualified adoption expenses, meaning they cannot be counted toward the credit. Even if you incur attorney fees, court costs, travel expenses, or other adoption-related costs for a spouse's child, those expenses do not make you eligible for the credit. For 2019, the maximum credit is $14,080 per eligible child, but this credit only applies to qualified adoptions that meet all IRS requirements. The credit begins to phase out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income above $211,160 and is completely eliminated for those with income of $251,160 or more. However, the income phaseout is irrelevant for stepparent adoptions since the expenses themselves are not qualified in the first place.
Qualified adoption expenses don't include expenses: • For which you received funds under any state, local, or federal program; • That violate state or federal law; • For carrying out a surrogate parenting arrangement; • For the adoption of your spouse's child; • Reimbursed by your employer or otherwise; or • Allowed as a credit or deduction under any other provision of federal income tax law.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Who decides a child has special needs
For the 2019 Adoption Credit, a state - including the District of Columbia - makes the determination that a child has special needs. Three conditions must all be met: the child must have been a U.S. citizen or resident when the adoption effort began; the state must have determined the child cannot or should not be returned to the parents' home; and the state must have determined the child will not be adopted unless assistance is provided to the adoptive parents. States consider factors such as the child's age, ethnic background, membership in a minority or sibling group, and any medical, physical, mental, or emotional condition. A child having one of these factors alone is not enough - the state itself must formally make the special-needs determination before the child is treated as a child with special needs for purposes of the $14,080 maximum credit.
A child is a child with special needs if all three of the following statements are true. 1. The child was a citizen or resident of the United States or its possessions at the time the adoption effort began (U.S. child). 2. A state (including the District of Columbia) has determined that the child can't or shouldn't be returned to his or her parents' home. 3. The state has determined that the child won't be adopted unless assistance is provided to the adoptive parents.
2019 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
Rev. Proc. 2018-57 (IRS)
- Maximum credit
under § 23(b)(1) the maximum credit allowed for other adoptions is the amount of qualified adoption expenses up to $14,080
- Phase-out threshold
The available adoption credit begins to phase out under § 23(b)(2)(A) for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $211,160
- Fully phased out
under § 23(b)(2)(A) for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $211,160 and is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $251,160 or more.