This report presents findings from a July 2022 survey of families with children on the effects of the 2021 expanded child tax credit (CTC) in the US and Puerto Rico. Most eligible families received advanced monthly payments of the CTC from July to December 2021. The expanded credit was fully refundable, meaning that families with very low incomes received the maximum credit.

Our findings detail how families had a harder time affording essentials once the expanded credit expired. They faced more financial stress and higher levels of food hardship, reversing the positive benefits reported during the distribution of monthly payments.