Can my parents still claim me as a dependent for the 2022 tax year?

[Qwenton]

My parents want to claim me as a dependent for the 2022 tax year. I have lived on my own renting an apartment since beginning of 2021. I was a full time student (20 years old) from January 2022 - May 2022, however I was living on my own with no plans of moving back in with my parents. 2022 was my last semester of school so no schooling after May 2022. I have a full time job now and have been living on my own the rest of 2022. Can my parents still claim me as a dependent for the 2022 tax year?

[Hal_Al · Accepted solution]

Q.  Can my parents still claim me as a dependent for the 2022 tax year?

A.  No. 

There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and Other ("Qualifying Relative" in IRS parlance even though they don't have to actually be related). There is no income limit for a QC but there is an age limit, student status, a relationship test and residence test.

You can not be their Qualifying Child because you did not live with them for more than half the year.  You can not be their Qualifying Relative because you made more than $4400 in 2022. 

See full dependent rules at: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Rules-for-Claiming-a-Dependent-on-Your-Tax-Ret...

[MinhT1]

For tax year 2022, you were considered a full-time student and were under 24. Your parents can still claim you as a dependent if you provided less than half of your own support. If you provided more than half of your own support then your parents cannot claim you.

If your parents claim you as a dependent, then they can claim your education credits. If they do not, then only you can claim the education credits.

Please read this TurboTax Help article for more information. 

[Qwenton]

I do not believe they can claim me because I did not live with them for half of the year. I rented my own apartment and paid most living expenses on my own. This does not pass the Residency Test on irs.gov

[Hal_Al]

The residency test for college students is a little tricky.  When you are away at college, even if living off campus ("rented my own apartment and paid most living expenses"), for tax purposes, you are considered as still living with your parents and only being temporarily away from their home.

In your case, you do not meet the residency test because you did not return home after the May graduation. So, you did not reside with them from May to December and cannot be their Qualifying Child dependent.