La Raza to fight Congress on proposed law closing child tax credit for illegals

Behind the scenes, National Council of La Raza continues its work to protect illegal immigrants from U.S. tax law. While the U.S. taxpayers are on the hook for $15 trillion of debt, La Raza would like to give illegals up to $1,800 in tax credits.

“In order to extend the payroll tax holiday, Congress is considering a policy this week that will devastate over five million children in immigrant families across the country by eliminating the Child Tax Credit for households who pay taxes with an Individual Tax Identification Number,” said Ali Noorani, National Immigration Forum for La Raza.

La Raza contends that Congress’ proposed new legislation will force illegal immigrants to pay $1,800 in taxes. The reality of the tax-credit loophole means most of these low-income earners will not pay more in taxes, but they will not get a refund check from the IRS.

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), they issue “Individual Tax Identification Numbers (ITIN) to individuals who are required to have a U.S. taxpayer identification number but who do not have, and are not eligible to obtain a Social Security Number (SSN) from the Social Security Administration (SSA). ITINs are for federal tax reporting only, and are not intended to serve any other purpose."


In an effort to pressure lawmakers, La Raza has confirmed that a conference call is scheduled tomorrow with Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office and other immigration experts to learn what can be done to prevent the proposed changes to the Child Tax Credit from becoming law.

“Congress is on the brink of denying this tax credit to immigrant and mixed-status families, regardless of the fact that they paid their fair share in taxes,” Noorani said. “If we take action now we can stop Congress from succumbing to divisive and hateful politics, and protect tax-paying families and their children.”

With the Obama Administration teeing up the “fair share” argument on the airwaves, La Raza is willing and able to use some of the angry political rhetoric to further their quest for a form of blanket amnesty.

“A fair economy is the talk of the nation, but some members of Congress have their ears plugged,” according to Leticia Miranda, Associate Director of the Economic and Employment Policy Project for La Raza. “Lawmakers are seriously considering raising taxes on hardworking, low-income, taxpaying families in order to pay for an extension of the payroll tax cut. Rather than asking millionaires to pay their fair share, they want to raise taxes on those who can least afford it—by blocking taxpayers who use the Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) from receiving the Child Tax Credit. If this policy is enacted, more than four million Latino children and their families would face greater hunger, poverty, and other severe hardships, with negative consequences for the economy today and for years to come.”

While this may be a compelling plea, the IRS makes it clear that the ITIN does not authorize work in the U.S. or provide eligibility for Social Security benefits or the Earned Income Tax Credits.

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