If your child was born alive and died during the same year, and the exemption tests are met, you can take the full exemption. This is true even if the child lived only for a moment. Whether your child was born alive depends on state or local law. There must be proof of a live birth shown by an official document such as a birth certificate. Under these circumstances, if you do not have a social security number for the child, you may attach a copy of the child's birth certificate instead and enter "DIED" in column 2 of line 6c of the Form 1040 (PDF) or Form 1040A (PDF).

If you have determined that you are eligible to claim your child's exemption, you may also be eligible to claim the child tax credit. Please refer to the Form 1040 Instructions or Form 1040A Instructions for the Child Tax Credit. The referenced pages will explain who qualifies for this credit and how to calculate it.

The earned income credit generally requires that you provide a valid social security number for your qualifying child. However, if you meet all the other requirements to claim this credit and your child was born and died in the same year, you will not be required to provide a social security number for that child. Instead, you may enter "DIED" on line 4 of Form 1040, Schedule EIC (PDF), Earned Income Credit, and attach a copy of the child's birth certificate.