To claim him, he must satisfy the four tests below for Qualifying Child. If not there are further tests to see if he is a Qualifying Relative.
In general, to be a taxpayer’s qualifying child, a person must
satisfy four tests:
- Relationship
— the taxpayer’s child or
stepchild (whether by blood or adoption), foster child, sibling or
step-sibling, or a descendant of one of these.
- Residence — has the same principal residence as the
taxpayer for more than half the tax year. Exceptions apply, in certain
cases, for children of divorced or separated parents, kidnapped children,
temporary absences, and for children who were born or died during the
year.
- Age — must be under the age of 19 at the end of the
tax year, or under the age of 24 if a full-time student for at least five
months of the year, or be permanently and totally disabled at any time
during the year.
- Support — did not provide more than one-half of his/her
own support for the year.
If a child is claimed as a qualifying child by two or more
taxpayers in a given year, the child will be the qualifying child of:
- the parent;
- if more than one taxpayer is
the child’s parent, the one with whom the child lived for the longest time
during the year, or, if the time was equal, the parent with the highest
AGI;
- if no taxpayer is the child’s
parent, the taxpayer with the highest adjusted gross income (AGI).
Qualifying Relative
- Do they live
with you? Your relative must live at your residence all year or be on the
list of “relatives who do not live with you” in Publication 501. About 30 types of relatives are on this
list.
- Do they make less
than $4,050? Your relative cannot have a gross income of more
than $4,050 and be claimed by you as a dependent.
- Do you financially support
them? You must provide more than half of your relative’s total
support each year.
