Indiana Earned Income Credit
Last updated August 2026
The Indiana Earned Income Tax Credit is money at tax time for working families, worth 10 percent of your federal earned income tax credit, effective January 2023. It was raised from 9 percent, so the current figure is a full 10 percent.
The best feature is that it is refundable. If the credit is more than the tax you owe for the year, the excess comes back to you as a refund. For a lower-income worker, that is real cash, not just a smaller bill.
You may qualify for the Indiana credit if you claimed the earned income credit on your federal tax return, so the federal claim comes first.
One technical note that occasionally matters: the Indiana credit is calculated under the federal rules as they stood on January 1, 2023, and Indiana does not automatically adopt later federal EITC changes. For most filers this is invisible, but it can differ from your federal number in unusual cases.
Claiming it is one schedule: file Schedule IN-EIC with your Indiana IT-40 or IT-40PNR return. The Department of Revenue points filers to the IT-40 instruction booklets for the details.
Free filing help exists through VITA sites in season; dial 2-1-1 to find one. And the same working income often qualifies the household for SNAP and the Healthy Indiana Plan.
Updated August 2026 Program details can change — confirm with the program directly.
Who qualifies
- You generally must qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit and file an Indiana income tax return with Schedule IN-EIC attached
- The Indiana credit equals 10 percent of your federal EITC and is refundable
You may qualify. The program makes the final decision.
How to apply
- 1
File your federal return and claim the federal EITC first.
- 2
File your Indiana return with Schedule IN-EIC to claim the 10 percent state credit.
- 3
Because it is refundable, file even if you owe little or no Indiana tax.
- 4
Need help? Dial 2-1-1 to find a free VITA tax site.
What the application looks like
Common questions
How much is the Indiana EITC?
10 percent of your federal earned income tax credit, effective January 2023 (raised from 9 percent). It is refundable.
Is it refundable?
Yes. If the credit is more than your Indiana tax for the year, the excess is refunded to you.
Do I have to qualify for the federal credit?
Yes. You may claim the Indiana credit if you claimed the federal earned income credit on your federal return.
How do I claim it?
File Schedule IN-EIC with your Indiana IT-40 or IT-40PNR return.
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