H.R. 782

**Reignite Hope Act of 2025** This bill establishes a new nonrefundable personal tax credit (for three years) of $3,500 for critical employees. The bill also increases and makes other changes to the child tax credit. Under the bill, a *critical employee* is defined as an individual who works full-time for at least 75% of the tax year (as certified by such individual’s employer) as a * healthcare professional, * law enforcement officer, * member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew, * firefighter, * eligible child care provider, * family child care provider, or * personal or homecare aid. Further, under the bill, such individual’s primary place of employment for the majority of hours worked during the tax year must be in a qualified opportunity zone. (A qualified opportunity zone is an economically distressed community where new investments may be eligible for certain tax preferences.) This bill increases the child tax credit from $2,000 per qualifying child to $3,500 per qualifying child (or $4,500 per qualifying child under six years old). The bill also * increases the age limit of a qualifying child to 17 years old (from 16 years old), * extends the threshold at which the child tax credit begins to phase out ($200,000 for single taxpayers or $400,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly), * extends the child tax credit identification requirements applicable to qualifying children, and * increases the refundable portion of the child tax credit for certain taxpayers with fewer than three qualifying children.