The problem is with the instructions and my memory of past 1040's as I scanned some older tax returns. In the past I did not pay attention to the wording, “Someone can claim: [] You as a dependent Your spouse as a dependent []” and just left those boxes unchecked. Why I checked them in the 2023 form is a mystery, but I think the form and instructions were changed ever so slightly that it confused me, something that does not often occur. Even the IRS is not smart enough to trick me very often.
Normally I would not bother with how the form looked or even if I should even file a tax return due to my income constraints, and Turbo Tax usually is easy to follow so mistakes are not often made. But, one needs to keep records and especially with the IRS, one never knows these days.
After looking at the 2016=2022 form 1040's and it seems like something changed that confused my thinking. Not sure what. I am getting older and at 83 some things can appear kind of weird.
I hope the IRS forgets that I checked those extra boxes because I really am not in the mood to amend the return for a simple mistake.
