Generally, you don't always have to be entitled to claim the child as a dependent to claim the earned income credit (EIC) when your child meets the rules to be a qualifying child for the EIC, although there are some restrictions.

You may still be eligible to claim the EIC on behalf of the child when the reason you’re not entitled to claim the child as a dependent is that you’ve released a claim to a dependency exemption for the child under the special rule for divorced or separated parents or parents who live apart. Form 8332 may assign the dependent exemption and the child tax credit to the other parent, but it does not apply for the EIC.

When there is no other taxpayer who also meets the tests to claim the child as their dependent, you may be eligible to claim the EIC with a qualifying child when you meet all the tests to claim the EIC with a qualifying child. Your qualifying child must also meet the age, residency, and joint return tests. You may be eligible to claim the EIC with a qualifying child even when the dependent tests for support have not been met.

However, if your child also met the qualifying child tests to be the dependent of more than one person, tiebreaker rules may apply.

If your qualifying child was married at the end of your tax year, generally he or she can't be your qualifying child if they filed a joint return for the year unless that person and that person’s spouse file the joint return only to claim a refund of withholding or estimated tax paid.