Well, yes and no. They are creating a tax credit for next year but giving it to you in advance. (Otherwise the credit wouldn't have existed at all.)

Here's CNN's explanation:

Do I have to pay the rebate back?

No. And here's why.

Your rebate is a one-time tax cut - an advance on a credit you'll receive on your 2008 return.

It's an advance because your rebate will be based on your 2007 income. If it turns out that your 2008 income and number of children would have qualified you for a larger rebate than the one you received, you'll be sent the difference. If it turns out your 2008 income was lower than in 2007 and you should have gotten a lower rebate, you get to keep the difference.

"If you were supposed to receive a larger payment than you did, you will get the extra money," said Treasury spokesman Andrew DeSouza. "If you received more than what you should have gotten, you will not be penalized."

We are already getting a tax refund. I would much rather wait until next year for our 2008 tax refund. This, to me, is saying, "you don't want a loan? too bad here it is."


And this is what really made me not want the money (I've heard 2 different people say this)....

Where is the money coming from? A loan, probably from China. And what will we do? Go buy things, probably made in China.

If this was such a help the last time, why are we doing it again only 4 years later?

Oh well, it's another credit card getting paid off.

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"It's time to move from what we can do, to what we must do, to what we will do." ~Hillary Clinton

I remember This with those Child Tax rebates -
We got an Early Rebate , but then didn't Get it again at tax time.

If you get a refund in any case, that means that the government is paying you back an interest-free loan you made it (in fact, you'll be about 3% behind, because you'll have lost ground to inflation). I know it's fun to get, but it's better to never pay it in the first place and put the same amount of money somewhere it would make more money.

I'm against it in any case, as I said (although I'll enjoy having it!) but whether you receive it now (as you can't help but do) or were to get it next April, it still means you will have to pay $600/person less in taxes overall than you would have otherwise.

Unless they raise them again some other way by then, which wouldn't surprise me.

I am just curious where they are pulling this money from? Are we going to have to pay this back?

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♥ Staying at home and still makin money! ♥

My husband is a tax accountant and says this: "It's NOT free money. It's an advance on your 2008 tax return. So if you normally get a refund, your refund in 2009 will be smaller. If you usually owe, expect to owe a lot more.

How is this helpful? It's a timing difference only. And my guess is that most people won't realize this, spend the money, and will find themselves in dire straights next spring. Where's the beef? they'll ask. And then, with the realization that the money they spent is no more, a real spending freeze will occur, and the potential for another recession will loom. What a fiasco."

Though I know it is not "free money" I feel VERY blessed for this to be comming when it is! I am due with baby #1 in April and we do not have a huge emergency fund!! DH wants to take some time off half paid and half unpaid to be with me and the new baby, this will allow us to build our emergency fund and I will get to have DH home with me longer becuase this money can cover any money we will lose by him being off!! Also, an emergency fund it going to be soo importnat with a baby!!!

I think though for us it will work out, becuase we should still get a return in 2009 since we will have a child and this year we do not! Am I right?

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Leave it to the government to make doing my taxes MORE complicated.

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"I've been rich and I've been poor but independently wealthy is where it is at."

we got our taxes done, and the lady said she heard that with the rebate check they r talkin bout gettin rid of the child credit next year at tax season since we r gettin money twice this year for kids.

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WIFE TO MIKE
MOTHER TO HUNTER 3YRS OLD AND HEATH BORN 9/22

I didn't read all the responses, so I'm sorry if this question was already answered.
Do we receive this money in our tax refund this year or is it coming at a separate time?