Forms 8615 or 8814 - Which Form Do I Need?
1

If you are completing the parents' return, DO NOT enter the information for Form 8615 Tax for Certain Children Who Have Unearned Income but DO complete Form 8814 Parents’ Election To Report Child’s Interest and Dividends.

To enter information for the child's return (Form 8615):

  1. From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop), click Federal (on smaller devices, click in the top left corner of your screen, then click Federal).
  2. Click the Taxes dropdown, then click Tax on child's unearned income.
  3. Continue with the interview process to enter your information.

To enter information for the parents' return (Form 8814):

  1. From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop), click Federal (on smaller devices, click in the top left corner of your screen, then click Federal).
  2. Click the Taxes dropdown, then click Child's interest and dividend income on your return.
  3. Click + Add Form 8814 to create a new copy of the form or click Edit to edit a form already created (desktop program: click Review instead of Edit).
  4. Continue with the interview process to enter your information.

Per the IRS instructions, the following notes will appear at the top of printed versions of these forms:

  • Form 8615 - "Attach to [the child's] Form 1040 or Form 1040-NR"
  • Form 8814 - "Attach to parents' Form 1040 or Form 1040-NR"

Note that any link in the information above is updated each year automatically and will take you to the most recent version of the webpage or document at the time it is accessed.