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Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR

§ 1.21-4. Payments to certain related individuals.

In effect eCFR current as of October 15, 2026

Regulation text, no changes From the eCFR, current as of October 15, 2026. The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation of the Code of Federal Regulations; the official text is the annual CFR on govinfo. Compare it with this section on ecfr.gov (external site) or the official annual CFR on govinfo (external site).

Regulation under 26 U.S.C. § 21

Cite as 26 CFR § 1.21-4

At a glance

Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.

Status
In the current eCFR
Issued
August 14, 2007 by T.D. 9354
Issued under
26 U.S.C. § 21
Length
478 words · about 2 min to read
Cross-references
cites 3 Code sections and 1 regulation; cited by 0
(a) In general. A credit is not allowed under section 21 for any amount paid by the taxpayer to an individual—
(1) For whom a deduction under section 151(c) (relating to deductions for personal exemptions for dependents) is allowable either to the taxpayer or the taxpayer's spouse for the taxable year;
(2) Who is a child of the taxpayer (within the meaning of section 152(f)(1) for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2004, and section 151(c)(3) for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2005) and is under age 19 at the close of the taxable year;
(3) Who is the spouse of the taxpayer at any time during the taxable year; or
(4) Who is the parent of the taxpayer's child who is a qualifying individual described in § 1.21-1(b)(1)(i) or (b)(2)(i).
(b) Payments to partnerships or other entities. In general, paragraph (a) of this section does not apply to services performed by partnerships or other entities. If, however, the partnership or other entity is established or maintained primarily to avoid the application of paragraph (a) of this section to permit the taxpayer to claim the credit, for purposes of section 21, the payments of employment-related expenses are treated as made directly to each partner or owner in proportion to that partner's or owner's ownership interest. Whether a partnership or other entity is established or maintained to avoid the application of paragraph (a) of this section is determined based on the facts and circumstances, including whether the partnership or other entity is established for the primary purpose of caring for the taxpayer's qualifying individual or providing household services to the taxpayer.
(c) Examples. The provisions of this section are illustrated by the following examples:
Example 1.

During 2007, X pays $5,000 to her mother for the care of X's 5-year old child who is a qualifying individual. The expenses otherwise qualify as employment-related expenses. X's mother is not her dependent. X may take into account under section 21 the amounts paid to her mother for the care of X's child.

Example 2.

Y is divorced and has custody of his 5-year old child, who is a qualifying individual. Y pays $6,000 during 2007 to Z, who is his ex-wife and the child's mother, for the care of the child. The expenses otherwise qualify as employment-related expenses. Under paragraph (a)(4) of this section, Y may not take into account under section 21 the amounts paid to Z because Z is the child's mother.

Example 3.

The facts are the same as in Example 2, except that Z is not the mother of Y's child. Y may take into account under section 21 the amounts paid to Z.

[T.D. 9354, 72 FR 45341, Aug. 14, 2007]

Other regulations under § 21

Cross-references

Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.

Code sections it cites

Regulations it cites

Amendment history

From the source citation at the end of the section, newest first. T.D. is a Treasury decision; FR is the Federal Register.

  1. Issued by T.D. 9354 (72 FR 45341)

Where it sits in 26 CFR

  1. Subchapter A Income tax
  2. Part 1 Income taxes
  3. Changes in Rates During a Taxable Year

Nearby sections