I paid rent for 6 months outside of my parents home using my earned income. They counted me as a dependent on their taxes. Am I qualified to file myself as an independent?

[Critter]

No ... if you were already claimed as a dependent you cannot claim yourself.  And just paying rent is not enough ...you had to pay for more than 1/2 your total living expenses for more than 1/2 the year.  

Who can I claim as my dependent?

You can claim a child, relative, friend, or fiance (etc.) as a dependent on your 2019 taxes as long as they meet the following requirements:

Qualifying child

• They are related to you.
• They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
• They are a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.
• They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse.
• They are under the age of 19 (or 24 for full-time students).
  • No age limit for permanently and totally disabled children.
• They live with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).
• They didn't provide more than half of their own support for the year.

Qualifying relative

• They don't have to be related to you (despite the name).
• They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
• They are a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.
• They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse.
• They lived with you the entire year.
• They made less than $4,250 in 2019 ($4,300 in 2020).
• You provided more than half of their financial support.

When you add someone as a dependent, we'll ask a series of questions to make sure you can claim them.

Related Information:

• Does a dependent have to live with me?
• What does "financially support another person" mean?
• Can I claim myself or my spouse as a dependent?
• Can I claim my parent as a dependent?
• Can I claim a newborn baby?

[DavidS127 · Accepted solution]

It depends.  If your parents can't claim you as a dependent, you can file your own tax return and claim your own exemption.  But, you won't be able to e-file your return because your social security number has already claimed in your parent's return.  Instead, you will need to print and mail your return.  But, be aware that until further notice the IRS has suspended processing of paper returns due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Also, if you file a tax return claiming your own exemption, your parents will need to file an amended tax return without you as a dependent.

Now, for the question of whether your parents can claim you as a dependent:

Your parents can claim you as a dependent as a "qualifying child" if you:

1. are under age 19 at the end of the tax year (24 if a full-time student, or any age if disabled):
2. lived with your parents for more than half the year;
3. did not provide more than half your support; and,
4. did not file a joint tax return (except to get your withholding back). 

If your parents can't claim you as a qualifying child because you are "too old", they can still claim you as a dependent as a qualifying relative if:

1. your gross income for the year is less than $4,200; and,
2. they provided more than half your support for the year.

If your parents claim you as a dependent, you must file a tax return if you are single and any of the following apply:

1. Your unearned income (e.g, interest & investment income) was more than $1,100.
2. Your earned income (from your job) was more than $12,200.
3. Your gross income was more than the larger of—

• $1,100, or
• Your earned income (up to $11,850) plus $350.

This Table 2 from IRS Publication 501 gives all those details.

Even if you aren't required to file a tax return, you may want to do so to get a refund of any taxes you had withheld.

Table 5 from IRS Publication 501 is a good overview of what it takes to claim a dependent.

[Carl]

Paying rent isn't even the tip of the iceberg on the support requirements. If on Dec 31 of the tax year you were:

- Under the age of 24 and;

- Enrolled as a full time student for *ANY ONE SEMESTER" that started in the tax year and;

- Enrolled in an accredited institution and;

- Enrolled in a course of study that will lead to a degree or other credentialed certification and;

- Did not provide more than half of your own support for the year, then:

Your parents qualify to claim you as a dependent on their tax return. Period. End of story.

Take note in the above requirements that there is no requirement for your parents to provide you any support. Not one single penny. The support requirement is on the student, and only the student.

Note also that there is no mention of the student's income. That's because the student's income does not matter. The student could have earned a million dollars (literally!) and still qualify to be claimed as a dependent on the parent's tax return.

Finally, time spent away from home for the primary purpose of attending school is considered as time having lived with the parents.