Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 465

Incapacitated child tax credit

Section 465 provides a tax credit of €3,800 for a claimant who has a permanently incapacitated child living at any time during the year of assessment.

• The incapacitated child tax credit of €3,800 is available where a child is permanently incapacitated by mental or physical infirmity; for a child under 18, the infirmity must be such that there is a reasonable expectation the child would be unable to maintain himself or herself if over 18.
• The credit extends to children over 18 who are permanently incapacitated from self-maintenance, provided the incapacity arose before age 21 or arose after 21 while the child was in full-time education or training; full-time training includes apprenticeships lasting at least two years.
• The credit is also available where the claimant has custody of and maintains an incapacitated child who is not their own (for example, a foster child), provided no other person is claiming the credit in respect of that child.
• Where two or more individuals maintain the same child, only one credit is allowed and it is apportioned between the claimants in proportion to the amount each spends on the child's maintenance; a claimant cannot claim both this credit and the dependent relative tax credit under section 466 for the same child.