2024 Adoption Credit
For 2024, the Adoption Credit figures are $16,810 (Maximum credit), $252,150 (Phase-out threshold) and $292,150 (Fully phased out).
Effective 2024-01-01Source: Rev. Proc. 2023-34 (IRS)Verified 2026-09-02
Compared with 2023
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum credit | $15,950 | $16,810 | +$860 (+5.4%) |
| Phase-out threshold | $239,230 | $252,150 | +$12,920 (+5.4%) |
| Fully phased out | $279,230 | $292,150 | +$12,920 (+4.6%) |
Who it applies to
Taxpayers who adopted a child or paid qualified adoption expenses in a taxable year beginning in 2024, including those who adopted a child with special needs.
What changed this year, and why
For taxable years beginning in 2024, the IRS has announced inflation-adjusted amounts for the Adoption Credit under Internal Revenue Code § 23, as set out in Revenue Procedure 2023-34.
Common questions
- What is the maximum Adoption Credit for 2024?
- For 2024, the maximum Adoption Credit is $16,810 per child. For an adoption of a child with special needs, the full credit of $16,810 is allowed. For other adoptions, the credit is limited to the amount of qualified adoption expenses, up to $16,810.
- When does the 2024 Adoption Credit begin to phase out?
- The credit begins to phase out when modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $252,150. It is completely phased out for taxpayers with MAGI of $292,150 or more.
- What income range does the phase-out cover?
- The credit is reduced for MAGI between $252,150 and $292,150, and is eliminated entirely once MAGI reaches $292,150.
Every amount on this page is a published figure rather than yours. The Adoption credit after the income phase-out takes the number you enter and works it out against them, showing which published figure it used.
The credit shrinks as income rises
The adoption credit begins to phase out when your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $252,150. Once your MAGI reaches $292,150 or more, the credit is completely eliminated. For taxpayers with MAGI between these two thresholds, the credit amount is reduced proportionally. The maximum credit available in 2024 is $16,810 per eligible child, but higher-income taxpayers will receive a reduced credit or no credit at all depending on where their income falls within the phase-out range.
This amount begins to phase out if you have modified adjusted gross income in excess of $252,150 and is completely phased out for modified adjusted gross income of $292,150 or more.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
The credit and the employer exclusion cannot cover the same expense
The adoption credit and exclusion are not separate benefits you can stack on the same dollar of spending. You may use both benefits in the same year for the adoption of the same child, but you cannot apply both the credit and the exclusion to the same qualified expenses. In 2024, the maximum amount for either benefit is $16,810 per eligible child, so a taxpayer could, for example, exclude $16,810 of employer-paid adoption assistance from income and also claim a $16,810 credit, but only if those amounts cover different expenses paid in connection with the adoption. The rule prevents double-counting the same outlay.
But, you can't claim both a credit and exclusion for the same expenses.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Unused credit carries forward
If the credit you are allowed to take this year is less than the amount you calculated on Form 8839, the difference does not disappear. The unused portion can be carried forward for up to 5 years, or until it is fully used, whichever happens first. Taxpayers must complete the Adoption Credit Carryforward Worksheet to determine how much of the credit can be used in 2025 and must keep the worksheet because it will be needed again in future years to track the remaining balance.
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.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
MAGI for the credit adds back income excluded because you live abroad or in a territory
For the 2024 Adoption Credit, modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is not simply the adjusted gross income shown on your tax return. If you excluded income because you live abroad or in a U.S. territory, that excluded income must be added back to determine your MAGI for the credit. Specifically, the amount from Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 11, is increased by the total of any exclusion of income from Puerto Rico, amounts from Form 2555, lines 45 and 50, and the amount from Form 4563, line 15. For 2024, the credit begins to phase out when MAGI exceeds $252,150 and is fully eliminated at $292,150 or more.
Enter on line 7 the amount from Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 11, increased by the total of any: • Exclusion of income from Puerto Rico; • Amounts from Form 2555, lines 45 and 50; and • Amount from Form 4563, line 15.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Expenses paid before a domestic adoption is final wait a year
When you pay qualified adoption expenses in a year before the adoption becomes final, you cannot claim the credit in that same year. Instead, the credit must be taken the year after the payment was made. For example, if you pay expenses in 2023 but the adoption does not become final until 2025, you would claim the credit on your 2024 return, not your 2023 return. Once the adoption is final, any expenses paid in the year of finalization are claimed in that same year, and expenses paid in later years are claimed in the year they are paid. This timing rule applies only to domestic adoptions of U.S. children. For adoptions that never become final, the timing follows a different pattern.
IF you pay qualifying expenses in... THEN take the credit in... 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.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
The form that claims it, and the order its parts are filled in
The adoption credit is claimed on Form 8839, which must be completed in a specific order. If your employer paid for qualified adoption expenses under a written adoption assistance program, you must complete Part III of Form 8839 before you can calculate the credit in Part II. This is because employer-paid expenses are not considered qualified adoption expenses for purposes of the credit, so Part III determines how much of your expenses were reimbursed. The form then calculates whether you qualify for a credit for any remaining unreimbursed expenses. The income limit for 2024 is based on MAGI, with the maximum credit of $16,810 phasing out between $252,150 and $292,150.
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.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
What happens if the adoption falls through
If you pay qualified adoption expenses in an attempt to adopt a U.S. child but the adoption is unsuccessful, you do not lose those expenses. Instead, they are treated the same way as expenses paid for an adoption that has not yet become final by the end of the year. This means you can still claim the credit, but the timing follows the rules for pre-finalization expenses. The maximum credit for 2024 is $16,810 per child, subject to the income phaseout that begins at $252,150 MAGI and is fully eliminated at $292,150. Expenses paid in a prior year for an unsuccessful adoption can be claimed in the year after the year of payment, following the same timing rules that apply to adoptions that have not yet been finalized.
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.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Whether the credit is refundable, or only reduces what you owe
The 2024 adoption credit is nonrefundable: it can reduce your federal income tax to zero, but it does not produce a refund by itself. You must complete the Credit Limit Worksheet in the Form 8839 instructions to figure how much of the credit you can actually use against your 2024 tax liability. The maximum credit for 2024 is $16,810 per eligible child, and it phases out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income between $252,150 and $292,150. Because the credit only offsets tax you owe, how much of it you can use in 2024 depends on your tax liability that year.
Complete the credit limit worksheet to figure the limit of your nonrefundable adoption credit.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
What counts as a qualified adoption expense
For the 2024 Adoption Credit, the IRS defines qualified adoption expenses as reasonable and necessary costs that are directly related to, and have the principal purpose of, completing the legal adoption of an eligible child. Eligible costs include adoption fees paid to an agency, attorney fees, court costs, and travel expenses - meals and lodging included - incurred while away from home for adoption-related purposes. If a family adopts a child from another country, re-adoption expenses (the process of finalizing a foreign adoption under U.S. or state law) also qualify. However, the credit cannot be claimed for expenses that were reimbursed by an employer, paid with funds from a state, local, or federal assistance program, or already used for another federal credit or deduction. Costs tied to a surrogate parenting arrangement or the adoption of a spouse's child are also excluded, as are any expenses that violate state or federal law. Families can claim up to the maximum credit of $16,810 per eligible child in 2024, though the benefit phases out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income between $252,150 and $292,150.
Qualified adoption expenses are reasonable and necessary expenses directly related to, and for the principal purpose of, the legal adoption of an eligible child.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Adopting your stepchild does not qualify for the credit
Expenses paid to adopt the child of your spouse are not qualified adoption expenses for the federal Adoption Credit. This means that if you pay attorney fees, court costs, travel expenses, or any other costs in connection with adopting your spouse's child, none of those amounts can be counted toward the credit. The IRS treats the spouse's child as already part of the family unit, so the tax benefit is reserved for adoptions that create a new parent-child relationship. Even if you incur significant legal and administrative fees during the process, the adoption credit is not available for a stepchild adoption. You may still qualify for the credit - up to $16,810 per child in 2024 - if you adopt a child other than your spouse's child, provided your modified adjusted gross income falls below the $252,150 phase-out threshold and the other requirements are met. The credit begins to phase out once income exceeds that level and is fully eliminated at $292,150.
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.
2024 Instructions for Form 8839, Qualified Adoption Expenses (IRS)
Who decides a child has special needs
For the federal Adoption Credit, a child is classified as having special needs only if a state - including the District of Columbia - has made that determination. The state must find that the child cannot or should not be returned to their parents' home and that the child will not be adopted unless assistance is provided to the adoptive parents. When making this determination, states may consider factors such as the child's age, ethnic background, membership in a minority or sibling group, and whether the child has a medical condition or a physical, mental, or emotional handicap. A child's having one of these factors or conditions alone is not enough; the state must formally determine that the child has special needs before the child is treated as such for purposes of the credit. This special-needs classification can allow an adoptive parent to claim the credit even without paying qualified adoption expenses. For the 2024 tax year, the maximum Adoption Credit is $16,810.
3. The state has determined that the child won't be adopted unless assistance is provided to the adoptive parents. Factors used by states to make this determination include: a. The child's ethnic background and age, b. Whether the child is a member of a minority or sibling group, and c. Whether the child has a medical condition or a physical, mental, or emotional handicap.
2024 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. 2023-34 (IRS)
- Maximum credit
under § 23(b)(1) the maximum credit allowed for other adoptions is the amount of qualified adoption expenses up to $16,810
- 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 $252,150
- Fully phased out
under § 23(b)(2)(A) for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $252,150 and is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $292,150 or more.