Illinois Statutes Chapter 35. Revenue § 5/227. Adoption credit

(a) Beginning with tax years ending on or after December 31, 2018 and ending with tax years ending on or before December 31, 2029, in the case of an individual taxpayer there shall be allowed a credit against the tax imposed by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 201 in an amount equal to the amount of the federal adoption tax credit received pursuant to Section 23 of the Internal Revenue Code 1 with respect to the adoption of a qualifying dependent child, subject to the limitations set forth in this subsection and subsection (b). The aggregate amount of qualified adoption expenses which may be taken into account under this Section for all taxable years with respect to the adoption of a qualifying dependent child by the taxpayer shall not exceed $2,000 ($1,000 in the case of a married individual filing a separate return). The credit under this Section shall be allowed: (i) in the case of any expense paid or incurred before the taxable year in which such adoption becomes final, for the taxable year following the taxable year during which such expense is paid or incurred, and (ii) in the case of an expense paid or incurred during or after the taxable year in which such adoption becomes final, for the taxable year in which such expense is paid or incurred. No credit shall be allowed under this Section for any expense to the extent that funds for such expense are received under any federal, State, or local program. For purposes of this Section, spouses filing a joint return shall be considered one taxpayer.

For a non-resident or part-year resident, the amount of the credit under this Section shall be in proportion to the amount of income attributable to this State.

(b) Increased credit amount for resident children. With respect to the adoption of an eligible child who is at least one year old and resides in Illinois at the time the expenses are paid or incurred, subsection (a) shall be applied by substituting $5,000 ($2,500 in the case of a married individual filing a separate return) for $2,000.

(c) In no event shall a credit under this Section reduce the taxpayer's liability to less than zero. If the amount of the credit exceeds the income tax liability for the applicable tax year, the excess may be carried forward and applied to the tax liability of the 5 taxable years following the excess credit year. The credit shall be applied to the earliest year for which there is a tax liability. If there are credits from more than one year that are available to offset a liability, the earlier credit shall be applied first.

(d) The term “qualified adoption expenses” shall have the same meaning as under Section 23(d) of the Internal Revenue Code.