Good news for families living in New York! The state has just approved a big package of tax breaks and extra financial help through its new FY2026 budget, signed into law in April 2025. Governor Kathy Hochul made it clear that helping working families and children is a top priority, especially after the rising cost of living over the past few years.
If you’re a resident of “The Empire State”, you could get benefits like a bigger Child Tax Credit, stimulus checks, free school meals, and tax cuts for the middle class. Let’s look at what’s changing and how it could help you.
Expanded Child Tax Credit: Up to $1,000 Per Child
Families with children will now receive more money thanks to an expanded Child Tax Credit.
- Children under 4 years old will receive up to $1,000 per year.
- Children between 4 and 16 years old will receive $500 annually.
This is three times more support than before, especially for families with young children. Over 1.6 million households are expected to benefit. The goal is to help low-income families deal with the cost of food, housing, and childcare, which have become more expensive in recent years.
New Tax Cuts for the Middle Class in New York
Governor Hochul’s administration also approved a $1 billion tax cut plan for middle-income families. These tax cuts will be applied over the next two years and are aimed at people earning between $50,000 and $150,000 per year.
Families in this income group could save between $500 and $1,200 each year. These are the lowest state tax rates in over 70 years. It’s a big relief for working families who are struggling to keep up with rising rent and daily expenses.
With housing costs up by 22% since 2020, and with more than one-third of New Yorkers spending over 50% of their income on rent, this move comes at the right time.
Up to $400 Stimulus Checks for 8 Million Families
To help families further, the New York budget includes a plan to send stimulus checks of up to $400 to over 8 million households with children.
These payments are meant as inflation relief, and priority will be given to families earning less than $75,000 annually. The money will come from tax surpluses collected in 2025, which were higher than expected by $3.1 billion.
Although the exact payment dates are not confirmed yet, the checks are part of a bigger plan to help families manage rising prices.
Free School Meals for All Public School Students
Another big win for families: all students in New York’s public schools will now get free breakfast and lunch every school day, saving families up to $1,600 per year per child.
This new program will benefit around 2.7 million students, and it expands a smaller project that started in 2023. Earlier, only some schools provided free meals, and students had to qualify based on income. Now, all students are included, reducing paperwork and removing any social stigma.
The state has budgeted $900 million per year for this program, which is part of a wider focus on helping families manage the high cost of living.
Families Could Gain Up to $5,000 in Benefits
When you add everything together—tax credits, free meals, stimulus checks, and rebates—some New York households could receive as much as $5,000 in combined benefits in the next year.
These policies show how New York is trying to directly support families, especially those in low- and middle-income groups, in response to rising expenses and inflation.