No. As long as your son qualifies as a dependent, he is not eligible to get the AOTC. If he would then fully support himself (or pay over half of his own living expenses when earning $15,000) he would only qualify for the non-refundable portion, not the full credit.
"If you were under age 24 at the end of 2023 and the conditions listed below apply to you, you cannot claim any part of the American opportunity credit as a refundable credit on your tax return. Instead, you can claim your allowed credit, figured in Part II, only as a nonrefundable credit to reduce your tax.
You don't qualify for a refundable American opportunity credit if 1 (a, b, or c), 2, and 3 below apply to you.
1. You were:
a. Under age 18 at the end of 2023, or
b. Age 18 at the end of 2023 and your earned income (defined later) was less than one-half of your support (defined later), or
c. Over age 18 and under age 24 at the end of 2023 and a full-time student (defined later) and your earned income (defined later) was less than one-half of your support (defined later).
2.At least one of your parents was alive at the end of 2023.
3.You're not filing a joint return for 2023." Instructions for form 8863
Note, you cannot just say he is paying over half of his own support based on the amount he earns.
Click on the link above for the instructions to determine what would need to happen in order for him to qualify for the refundable portion of the credit.
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