The Trump administration has proposed requiring taxpayers to disclose their citizenship and work authorization status when filing federal income tax returns, a change that would place immigration-related questions directly on the annual Form 1040.
The proposal is intended to prevent people who do not meet federal eligibility requirements from receiving refundable tax credits. It has also raised concerns among taxpayer and privacy advocates, who say the information could become part of broader immigration enforcement efforts.
New Tax Form Question Would Apply to Every Filer
The draft 2026 Form 1040, posted by the IRS in late August, asks whether the taxpayer and, when filing jointly, the taxpayer’s spouse is a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or an alien lawfully authorized to work in the United States. Filers would answer “Yes” or “No.”
A similar question appears on a draft version of Schedule 3-A, which is used in connection with refundable tax credits. According to PBS NewsHour, the questions would not be optional, meaning taxpayers would certify their citizenship or immigration status under penalty of law when filing their returns.
The Treasury Department says the change is designed to prevent people who lack qualifying immigration status from receiving refundable credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit.
A Treasury official said the information collected would remain “subject to a variety of privacy, disclosure and other legal protections.” The statement did not specify whether the information could be shared with immigration enforcement agencies.
Critics argue that the IRS already possesses information used to determine eligibility for certain credits. A valid Social Security number, rather than an Individual Tax Identification Number, is required for the Earned Income Tax Credit, and the IRS verifies Social Security numbers against Social Security Administration records.
“Your citizenship or residency status is not information the IRS needs to process a return,” Nina Olson, executive director of the Center for Taxpayer Rights, told The Associated Press in reporting carried by The Independent.
Proposal Could Affect Tax Credits and Immigration Enforcement Concerns
Immigrants without permanent legal status still pay federal taxes. According to Fox News, citing IRS and National Taxpayer Advocate data, 3.8 million tax returns in 2024 used an Individual Tax Identification Number. Taxpayers filing those returns paid $14.4 billion in income taxes and $6.5 billion in Social Security and Medicare taxes.
The administration argues that eligibility standards under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act should also apply to refundable tax credits.
Research cited by the three reports estimates that 671,000 people, including 309,000 children, would lose access to the Earned Income Tax Credit under the policy. Another roughly 1.1 million people, including 574,000 children, would lose the Additional Child Tax Credit.
The researchers, from Boston University, Columbia University and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said most of the children affected would be U.S. citizens whose eligibility would change because of a parent’s citizenship or immigration status.
The proposal also comes after a previous Treasury Department agreement to share some taxpayer information with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. According to PBS NewsHour, a federal judge halted that arrangement after finding it violated taxpayer privacy laws. Before the order stopped the data sharing, the IRS had already provided ICE with addresses associated with 47,000 people.
David Bier, director of immigration studies at the Cato Institute, said the new tax question “could be used as an immigration enforcement tool,” reflecting the central privacy concern surrounding the proposal.
