Georgia: The Georgia Department of Revenue announced that citizens can now claim embryos as dependents on their state taxes, gathering up to $3,000 for each unborn child in the form of tax deductions.
This announcement has come right after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June and withdrew abortion procedure as a federal right and putting it off to state laws that varied widely in the different states throughout the country.
The Georgia Department of Revenue’s decision to make such a move also aligns with the state’s standpoint on reproductive rights.
In July, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stated, “Georgia’s prohibition on abortions after a detectable human heartbeat is rational.”
They added that the state’s Living Infants and Fairness Equality Act defines a “natural person” as “any human being including an unborn child.”
According to Healthline, A foetus’ heartbeats can be detected as early as six weeks into pregnancy, often before someone even realizes they are pregnant.
The Georgia Department of Revenue said that if a taxpayer “has an unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat” after July 20, such a person will be eligible to claim dependent or multiple dependents reductions on 2022 taxes.
The complete statement from The Georgia Department of Revenue reads, “In light of the June 24, 2022, U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the “Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization” and the July 20, 2022, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in Sister song v. Kemp, The Georgia Department of Revenue intends to recognize any unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat as ‘eligible’ for the Georgia individual income tax dependency exemption.
It further said that “Similar to any other deduction claimed on an income tax return, relevant medical records or other documentation will need to be provided to support the dependent deduction claimed if requested by the Department.”