What is “earned income” for computing the two wage earner credit?
A. SC provides married individuals filing a joint return a credit equal to .007 of the lesser of: (1) the SC qualified earned income of the spouse with the lower qualified earned income for the year or (2) $30,000. In general, “earned income” means wages, salaries, or professional fees, and other amounts received as compensation for personal services actually rendered. It does not include income, such as, an amount received from a retirement plan or an annuity, individual retirement account or annuity, deferred compensation, or any amount your spouse paid you, interest, dividends, Social Security benefits, or any non-taxable income. See Code Section 12-6-3330 and the instructions to the individual tax form for detailed instructions.
