HR 2153119th CongressIn Committee

Fight for Families Act of 2025

Introduced: Mar 14, 2025

Standard Summary

Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs

The Fight for Families Act of 2025 would change the federal income tax treatment of the Adoption Credit for special needs children. Specifically, it would make a portion of the Adoption Credit refundable. In practice, a part of the credit related to special needs adoptions could be paid to eligible taxpayers as a refund, even if they do not owe any tax for the year. The remainder of the Adoption Credit would remain nonrefundable and could still be used to reduce tax liability or carried forward to future years. The bill also adjusts how the nonrefundable portion is carried forward, by applying the refundable portion first. The measure applies to taxable years beginning after the later of enactment or December 31, 2025.

Key Points

1Creates a refundable portion of the Adoption Credit specifically for special needs adoptions, up to the amount of the taxpayer’s special needs adoption expenses for the year.
2Defines “special needs adoption expenses” as the total qualified adoption expenses for adoptions of children with special needs that are used to determine the Adoption Credit for that year.
3This refundable portion is treated as a credit under subpart C (the refundable portion) rather than under the standard nonrefundable Adoption Credit under Section 23.
4The calculation of the carryforward for the nonrefundable portion is adjusted to apply after the refundable portion is determined.
5Effective date: applies to taxable years beginning after the later of enactment or December 31, 2025.

Impact Areas

Primary: Families adopting special needs children who may benefit from a refundable component of the Adoption Credit, potentially receiving a refund even when income tax liability is low or zero.Secondary: IRS administration and tax planning for adoptive families; adoption service providers and advocates who assist families in navigating adoption finances.Additional impacts: Potential effects on federal revenue (by creating refunds tied to eligible adoption expenses) and on the behavior of taxpayers seeking to maximize the Adoption Credit for special needs adoptions. The rest of the Adoption Credit (nonrefundable portion) remains in place, with changes to how it is carried forward.

Generated by gpt-5-nano on Nov 18, 2025