taxmap/instr2/i8839-001.htm#TXMP0d99ac79
Definitions

An eligible child is:

• Any child under age 18. If the child turned 18 during the year, the child is an eligible child for the part of the year he or she was under age 18.
• Any disabled person physically or mentally unable to take care of himself or herself.

Qualified adoption expenses are reasonable and necessary expenses directly related to, and for the principal purpose of, the legal adoption of an eligible child.

Qualified adoption expenses include:

• Adoption fees,
• Attorney fees,
• Court costs,
• Travel expenses (including meals and lodging) while away from home, and
• Re-adoption expenses relating to the adoption of a foreign child.

Qualified adoption expenses do not include expenses:

• For which you received funds under any state, local, or federal program,
• That violate state or federal law,
• For carrying out a surrogate parenting arrangement,
• For the adoption of your spouse's child,
• Paid or reimbursed by your employer or any other person or organization,
• Paid before 1997, or
• Allowed as a credit or deduction under any other provision of federal income tax law.

Employer-provided adoption benefits are amounts your employer paid directly to either you or a third party for qualified adoption expenses under a qualified adoption assistance program. Generally, a qualified adoption assistance program is a separate written plan set up by an employer to provide adoption assistance to its employees. For more details, see Pub. 15-B, Employer's Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits.

Employer-provided adoption benefits should be shown in box 12 of your Form(s) W-2 with code T. Your salary may have been reduced to pay these benefits. You may also be able to exclude amounts not shown in box 12 of your Form W-2 if all of the following apply.

• You adopted a child with special needs. See the instructions for line 1, column (d), on page 2 for the definition of a child with special needs.
• The adoption became final in 2008.
• Your employer had a qualified adoption assistance program as described on page one.