I have some confusion regarding taxes and tax credits?

Davina David: Lauren is wrong.Non-refundable credits generally do NOT carry forward.If you expect to get all of your withholding back as a refund, then you do not need a non-refundable credit as you aren't paying any taxes. If you expect to get must some of your withholding back, then a non-refundable credit (such as education or child care) will help reduce the tax bill, but not below zero.There are 4 refundable credits in 2009:EIC.Additional Child tax credit.Up to 40% of the American Opportunity Credit (new for 2009, a new version of the Hope credit).The first time homebuyer's credit.If the credit you are hoping to use is not one of these, it may or may not affect your refund....Show more

Hye Caulley: Yes, the $8,000 is in addition to your stated return. If you, under normal circumstances, would have filed your tax return with a $1,000 tax rebate, you would now get between $1,000 and $9,000 (you get the full $8,000 if the house you bought was $80K or more; otherw! ise you get 10% of the purchase price). This is a true tax credit, not deduction, and unlike the prior tax credit, you do not have to pay it back.

Jerald Florence: If you earned over the $7500 standard deduction, you owe taxes.The money that is taken out of your paycheck for taxes is actually a prepayment of the taxes you will owe in the April of the following year.If you get a refund, that does not mean you didn't pay taxes. It means that from the prepayment process you overpaid your taxes and you provided the IRS an interest free loan for that amount.The $1500 tax credit will go on to your tax return. If it is a true tax credit (not tax deduction) it will reduce your tax debt by $1500. So you would get an additional $1500 refund from your prepayment. If that means you don't owe any money in taxes, depending on what the tax credit is for, you may or may not get get additional money....Show more

Nona Lentini: It depends on what type of credit you have. Some! credits, like the earned income credit and child tax credit, ! are refundable and you will get those back. Other credits can only be used to offset your taxes, and if the credit exceeds your taxes they are carried forward to future years.What happens most commonly is the tax credits reduce your tax bill, and then if you have withholdings from work, those become your tax refund.You will need to file a tax return to get any of these to work....Show more

Janean Guz: A "return" is the set of forms that you file with the IRS. Your question is about your "refund".If you are entitled to a refund and a tax credit, then the amount of your credit will (in most cases) be added to the amount of your refund, so your refund will be larger.

Oda Mauson: Depends on what kind of credit it is. If it's a "refundable" credit (most are NOT) then you'd get the credit amount added to your refund. Otherwise no, you wouldn't get it because you paid no tax to begin with.