@martoro wrote:
I see in the Info Wks that the "Someone can claim the child as dependent" checkbox is checked. What does this do? What are the consequences of not checking it?
The checkbox will make TurboTax calculate the child's standard deduction according to the rules for a dependent instead of the rules for someone who is not a dependent. It also might affect who can claim an education credit. I'm sure there are other deductions or credits that cannot be claimed by a dependent, but I don't have a list and I can't think of what they are right now.
The consequence of not checking the box is that the person who is eligible to claim the child as a dependent will not be able to. If they try to e-file and claim the dependent their e-file will be rejected. If they file by mail and claim the dependent they will get a notice from the IRS removing the dependent from their tax return and billing them for the resulting additional tax, penalties, and interest. When a dependent files a tax return and does not check that box, straightening out the mess is a lot of extra work and takes a long time.
