Dependent

[R_D]

My stepson graduated from High School in June 2024.  He turned 19 in December, is not in college, & has a job.  Can he still be claimed as a dependent for 2024?

[DoninGA]

Since he was a full time student in 2024, you may be able to claim him under the Qualifying Child rules as long as he did NOT provide over one-half of his own support and he lived in your home for over 6 months.  His income is not relevant under the Qualifying Child rules.

To be a Qualifying Child -

1. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
2. The child must be (a) under age 19 at the end of the year, (b) under age 24 at the end of the year and a full-time student or (c) any age and permanently and totally disabled.
3. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. Temporary absences while away at college are considered living with you.
4. The child must not have provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
5. If the child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person, you must be the person entitled to claim the child as a qualifying child.
6. The child must be a U.S. citizen or U.S., Canada or Mexico resident for some portion of the year.
7. The child must be younger than you unless disabled.

[Hal_Al]

Q. Can he still be claimed as a dependent for 2024?

A. Yes.

Being in high school through June (or even just part of May) meets the requirement for being a full time student for 5 months of the year.  A step child is your child, for tax purposes. 

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.

A child of a taxpayer can still be a “Qualifying Child” (QC) dependent, regardless of his/her income, if:

1. He is under age 19, or under 24 if a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, or is totally & permanently disabled
2. He did not provide more than 1/2 his own support. Scholarships are excluded from the support calculation
3. He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school) for more than half the year

So, it doesn't matter how much he earned. What matters is how much he spent on support. Money he put into savings does not count as support he spent on himself.

The support value of the home, provided by the parent, is the fair market rental value of the home plus utilities & other expenses divided by the number of occupants.

The IRS has a worksheet that can be used to help with the support calculation. See: http://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/teacher/worksheet_for_determining_support_4012.pdf

[Vanessa A]

Possibly. 

To claim your child as your dependent, your child must meet either the qualifying child test or the ...

• To meet the qualifying child test, your child must be younger than you or your spouse if filing jointly and either younger than 19 years old or be a "student" younger than 24 years old as of the end of the calendar year.
• There's no age limit if your child is "permanently and totally disabled" or meets the qualifying relative test.

In addition to meeting the qualifying child or qualifying relative test, you can claim that person as a dependent only if these three tests are met:

1. Dependent taxpayer test
2. Citizen or resident test, and
3. Joint return test.

If he does not meet the criteria to be a qualifying child, then he may be able to be a qualifying relative, then you would be able to claim the $500 Non-Refundable Other Dependent Credit as well as file as Head of Household. 

To claim someone as a Qualifying Relative, they must be:

• Your child ( including step children, adoptive children and foster children) or a descendent of them
• Your sibling (including half siblings) or a child of your sibling or a sibling-in-law
• Your parent or grandparents, including step parents and in laws
• Any other person that lived with you for the entire tax year
• Not a qualifying child of another taxpayer
• Someone that you provided over half of their support for during the tax year

(Edited 1/15/24 @9:43AM PST)
@R_D

[R_D]

So, if I understand this correctly, this will be the last year that he can be claimed as a dependent unless he goes to college.  Also, we do not add his W-2 to our income, correct?  Should he also file taxes, but claim 0 dependents or does he not file his own taxes?

[DawnC]

Correct.   Do not add his W-2 to your tax return.   He should file his own tax return for tax year 2024 and indicate that he CAN and will be claimed by someone else.   

[Hal_Al]

Q. So, if I understand this correctly, this will be the last year that he can be claimed as a dependent unless he goes to college?

A. Yes.

Q. Also, we do not add his W-2 to our income, correct? 

A. Yes.

A. Should he also file taxes?

A.  Yes. He checks the box on form 1040 that says he can be claimed as a dependent by someone else. TurboTax will ask that question, in the personal info section.

Q. But he  claims 0 exemptions, right?

A. Not exactly. Exemptions were eliminated in 2018.  He just checks the box on form 1040.  

With the tax law change, effective 2018, most student-dependents will get the same refund whether they claim themselves or not. The personal exemption has been eliminated and the standard deduction increased, for wage earners. 

[DoninGA]

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@R_D wrote:

So, if I understand this correctly, this will be the last year that he can be claimed as a dependent unless he goes to college.  Also, we do not add his W-2 to our income, correct?  Should he also file taxes, but claim 0 dependents or does he not file his own taxes?

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If he becomes a full time student and is under the age of 24 and meets the other requirements under the Qualifying child rules, you can claim him as a dependent.

If he is not a full time student in 2025 and his income is in excess of the gross income test (2025 amount has not been released but should be in the $5,400 to $5,500 range) then no one can claim him as a dependent.

He should file a tax return in 2024 if he had taxes withheld from his wages to get a tax refund.  He also needs to indicate on his tax return that he can be claimed as a dependent.