LAC 61:I.1931 — Credit for Adoption of Unrelated Infant

A. General
1. For tax periods beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and prior to January 1, 2029, Revised Statute 47:297.23 authorizes a refundable individual income tax credit for the adoption of certain unrelated children equal to $5,000, per child.
2. The credit shall be allowed against the income tax liability for the taxable period in which the adoption is finalized.
B. Definition
Unrelated—a taxpayer is unrelated if he or she is not the child’s parent, stepparent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, or aunt, whether of the whole or half blood or by adoption.
C. Claiming the Tax Credit
1. The taxpayer claiming the credit shall be listed as an adoptive parent on the adoption order or decree.
2. The credit is equal to $5,000 per child.
3. In the case of two adoptive parents who do not file jointly as a married couple, the credit shall be claimed by the taxpayer claiming the child as a dependent on his or her federal and Louisiana individual income tax returns, unless provided for differently by the adoption order or decree.
4. The following documentation shall be attached to and filed with the individual income tax return on which the credit is claimed:
a. a copy of the adoption order or decree, and
b. a letter from the private agency as defined in Louisiana Children's Code Article 1169(1), or attorney who facilitated the adoption stating when the infant was placed with the adoptive parents.
5. Failure to provide the documentation required in Paragraph 4 of this Subsection shall result in disallowance of the credit.
D. Other Tax Benefits Disallowed. A taxpayer claiming an adoption tax credit shall not receive a deduction pursuant to R.S. 47:297.21 for the same child.