A Qualifying Child as A Dependent
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Did you know that you could potentially get thousands of dollars towards your taxes for raising a child and claiming then on your IRS tax return? A qualifying child is one who meets the IRS requirements to be your dependent for tax purposes. Though it does not have to be your child, the qualifying child must be related to you. If someone is your qualifying child, then you can claim them as a dependent on your tax return.
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IRS Qualifying Child Requirements
To determine if you can claim someone, the person in question must meet all 6 of these requirements in order to be considered your IRS qualifying child:
- Relationship: The person must be your daughter, son, stepdaughter, stepson, foster child, sister, brother, half-sister, half-brother, stepsister, stepbrother, or a descendant of any of these such as a niece or nephew. Adopted children also qualify.
- Residency: They must have lived with you for more than half of the year, except for temporary absences. You cannot claim a child who did not live with you for at least 183 days/night, meaning you cannot claim any dependent deductions or credits and you cannot claim head of household if you do not have any qualifying children.
- Age: They must be one of the following:
- Under the age of 19 on the last day of the tax year (December 31) and younger than you (and your spouse if filing jointly).
- A full-time student under the age of 24 on the last day of the tax year (Dec. 31) and younger than you (and your spouse if filing jointly).
- Permanently disabled at any time during the year, regardless of their age.
- Support: They must have not provided more than half of their own support for the year, regardless of who did provide the support. Support includes food, actual or fair rental value of housing, clothing, transportation, medical expenses, and recreation expenses.
- Joint return: They must not file a joint tax return for the year if he or she is married. The only exception is if their married return is filed only to claim a refund and if they filed separate returns, they and their spouse both would have no tax liability.
- Nationality: They must be a U.S. citizen or national; otherwise, they must be a resident of the U.S., Canada, or Mexico. There is an exception for adopted children under certain circumstances.
If they could be a qualifying child for more than one person, you must be the person who is entitled to claim the child. Learn what to do if someone else claims your child or dependent.
Related: How much money can a child make and still be claimed as a dependent?
If it turns out that someone is not your qualifying child, you may want to see if they are your qualifying relative. You may not be able to claim certain tax credits if they are not, such as the Child Tax Credit, but you may be eligible for other tax credits or breaks. When you prepare a tax return on eFile.com, we will help you determine the status of your dependent as well as claim any tax credits you are entitled to based on your information.
Determine who you can claim on your taxes with these simple tools:
Is this person my dependent? | Is this person my qualifying relative?
Once you have determined if someone is your qualifying child dependent, start your return for free on eFile.com and enter your identifying information. After inputting your income, you can then add your dependents and eFile will help claim all the dependent tax deductions, credits, and other tax savings.
Below, find examples of tax dependents or qualifying children; claim a dependent on your taxes if you have determined you are qualified to do so.
Qualifying Child or Dependent Examples
The simplest cases of qualifying children include sons, daughters, and other related persons which you take care of that are under age 17. There are many scenarios where you may be wondering if you can claim someone, such as a married dependent or a college student. Review the examples below for information on whether or not these dependents can be claimed.
Child or Young Adult in College
Your daughter was 20 years old at the end of the year and was not married. She was a full-time college student during the year and lived in a dorm for most of the year. She worked part-time and earned $6,000, but she did not provide more than half of her own total support. Since leaving for school is considered a temporary absence, she is your qualifying child and you can claim her as a dependent on your tax return. Since she has her own earned income, she would likely want to file her own tax return and indicate that she can be claimed on another person's tax return. You do not report your dependent's income on your tax return.
Related: How much do I have to make to file taxes?
Married Child
Your daughter was 18 years old at the end of the tax year and was married. However, she and her husband are not filing taxes and she lived with you for more than 6 months of the year. She provided some of her own support for the year, but between your support and her husband's, she did not provide more than half of it. Your daughter qualifies as your qualifying child and can be claimed as a dependent on your tax return. After she turns 19, she will no longer meet the requirements to be your qualifying child unless she has become a full-time student. After that, she might be your qualifying relative.
Adult Child
Your son was 24 and unmarried at the end of the year. He was unemployed for most of the year and had an income of only $3,000. He lived with you in your home all year. In this case, your son is too old to be your qualifying child even if he lived with you and did not provide most of his own support. However, because his income was under $4,400 and you provided more than half of his support for the year, he is your qualifying relative and can be claimed as your dependent on your tax return.
Niece or Nephew
Your brother's 12-year old daughter lived with you for 7 months out of the year. You, your brother, and your father each provided some of her financial support during the year - but she provided none of her own support. Your niece meets the requirements to be your qualifying child and you can claim her as a dependent.
Related: What to do if someone claims my dependent.
Child of Girlfriend or Boyfriend
Your girlfriend's 4-year old son, who is not your own child, lived with you and your girlfriend all year. Your girlfriend had some income, but you provided more than half of her son's support. He is not your qualifying child because he is not related to you, but he is your qualifying relative and you can claim him as a dependent.
This is a special case. In the past, you would not be able to claim your girlfriend's child as a qualifying relative because the child was the qualifying child of the mother, even if she did not claim the child as a dependent. The IRS has revised its views and now allows the boyfriend or girlfriend with whom the parent and child lived to claim the child as a dependent as long as the parent doesn’t need to file a tax return or will not be claiming the dependent for any reason.
Qualifying Child Special Cases
There are certain cases where you can still claim a dependent even if they did not live with you all year. Review the sections below for details on some scenarios that may pertain to your situation.
Temporary Absence
A child is still considered to still be living with you during any period of time when you or the child is temporarily absent from the home due to school, business, military service, medical care, or vacation.
Birth or Death of Child
If a child was born or passed away during the tax year, they are considered to have lived with you all year if they lived in your home the entire time they were alive during the year. Any time in the hospital is considered a temporary absence.
Kidnapped Child
If a child was kidnapped during the year, they are still considered to have lived with you all year if law enforcement presumes the child has been been kidnapped by someone who is not a member of your family or the child's family. Additionally, if, in the year of the kidnapping, the child lived with you for more than half of the part of the year before the kidnapping occurred, as long as the child is missing, they are considered to be living with you until the year of the child's 18th birthday or until the child is determined to be deceased.
Foster Child
Generally, if you meet the conditions above for caring for a child dependent, then your foster child may qualify as your dependent. Learn more about how the taxation implications of a foster child.
Additional Resources
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