My 16 year old made $2500, received $41 in interest and payed $14 for early withdrawal of $500 from his savings account. Does he need to file taxes separately?

[MinhT · Accepted solution]

It depends.

If he received a form 1099-MISC for his earnings of $2,500, he is required to file a tax return as this is self-employment income.

If he received a form W-2 for the $2,500, he is not required to file his own return as the wages were less than $6,300. However, he may wish to file a return to get a refund of the taxes withheld. When filing his own return, he needs to indicate that he is claimed as a dependent by someone else.

[evan1]

It was W-2 income. Thank you

[IreneS]

UPDATED FOR TAX YEAR 2019

No.  He does not need to file, unless the $2,500 was for self-employment income reported on a 1099-MISC.

If children are still considered your dependents they must file if:

• Their unearned income is greater than $1,100 (like interest and dividends);
• Their earned income is greater than $12,200 (from a job, reported on a W-2); or
• They received a 1099-MISC and their net earnings from self­-employment was at least $400.

[Edited | 4/8/2020 |  12:25pm PDT]