Q. Can I claim them on my taxes?
A. Probably not, unless they lived with you since July 1 or 2.
Note the residency rule for a Qualifying Child: They lived with you for more than half the year.
There's one additional rule: They must not be the qualifying child of another taxpayer.. If they didn't live with you for more than half they year, they probably lived with their parent (or other relative) for more than half the year. If no relative had them for more than half the year, they may qualify as your Qualifying Relative (other) dependent but then you could not get the Child Tax credit or EIC.
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 and student status test, a relationship test and a residence test. Only a QC qualifies a taxpayer for the Earned Income Credit and the Child Tax Credit. The Other dependent (qualifying relative) credit is worth (up to) $500 per dependent and is non-refundable. That is, it can only be used to reduce an actual tax liability.
