Wisconsin Earned Income Tax Credit Calculator

Why Wisconsin ties its EITC to your number of children

Wisconsin runs one of the more unusual state earned income credits in the country. Instead of a single flat percentage of the federal EITC, it pays on a sliding scale set strictly by the number of qualifying children: 4% for one child, 11% for two, and 34% for three or more. Workers with no qualifying children receive nothing at the state level, even when they claim the federal credit, so this calculator correctly shows no Wisconsin credit for childless filers. That is the single most common surprise for people arriving from a flat-percentage state.

The jump from 11% to 34% when a family goes from two children to three is a genuine cliff rather than a gradual step, which makes Wisconsin unusually generous at the top tier while thinner in the middle. These rates were cut by 2011 Wisconsin Act 32 (down from the earlier 4%, 14%, and 43%) and have held ever since; proposals to restore the higher figures have surfaced in several budget cycles without becoming law, so 4/11/34 remains current for tax year 2026.

Two practical points often missed: the Wisconsin credit is refundable, so a full-year resident receives any excess as a cash refund, and you must qualify for the federal EITC first, because the state amount is built directly on it. If you work across the state line, compare your result with Minnesota's Working Family Credit, which, unlike Wisconsin, does reach childless workers.