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WASHINGTON (WJW) — Americans who qualify for the expanded child tax credit can enroll for direct payments starting next month, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

President Joe Biden signed a law in March issuing temporary expansion to the child tax credit. This expansion will allow eligible families to receive monthly checks of up to $300 per child for the second half of 2021.

In a press release Thursday, the IRS urged families to utilize their online tool that helps determine eligibility for the child tax credit and the monthly payments that begin on July 15.

The new Child Tax Credit Eligibility Assistant launched earlier this week. The IRS says that by answering a series of questions about themselves and their family, an individual can quickly determine whether they qualify for the credit. According to the governmental organization, this online tool will be particularly helpful to families who don’t normally file a federal tax return and/or those who have not yet filed either a 2019 or 2020 tax return.

“This new tool provides an important first step to help people understand if they qualify for the Child Tax Credit, which is especially important for those who don’t normally file a tax return,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in the release. “The eligibility assistant works in concert with other features on IRS.gov to help people receive this important credit. The IRS is working hard to deliver the expanded Child Tax Credit, and we will be rolling out additional help for taxpayers in the near future.”

Additionally, the IRS has unveiled the Child Tax Credit Update Portal which allows eligible Americans register for the child tax credit payments. Families can also choose to unenroll or opt out from receiving the monthly payments in this portal. By doing so, they could receive a lump sum of money when they file their tax return next year. 

Both the Child Tax Credit Eligibility Assistant and Child Tax Credit Update Portal are available now on IRS.gov.

The IRS has also created a webpage titled Advance Child Tax Credit 2021 that will provide the most up-to-date information about the credit and the advance payments.