2008 has been a very bad year income wise for myself. I have 2 kids and the only source of income that I had was unemployment compensation. Will that be counted as income for 2008 :confused:and will I be able to get the child tax credit and/or EITC?

You must file your unemployment as income. I don't know if you will be getting a refund, but you should get the EIC credit and receive some sort of refund check.

I am sorry to hear that the year was so difficult for you.

For federal purposes, unemployment is taxable income, so you definitely need to file a tax return. Note: I vaguely recall that not all states agree with the fed, so be sure to check to see if your home state treats unemployment benefits as taxable income.

The child tax credit is available to you.

Unemployment benefits are NOT considered earned income. Therefore, no EIC.

If you had ANY earned income at all, then you should qualify for the EIC.