topic Simple answer: yes. The fact that he couldn't be claimed,... in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Can I claim my student son as a dependent after not claiming him last year when he completed 2 co-ops and earned too much for me to claim?

vam — Thu, 06 Jun 2019 14:02:06 GMT

Since he paid all his own living expenses and made around $25000 and I didn't have to pay any tuition.

Simple answer: yes. The fact that he couldn't be claimed,...

Hal_Al — Thu, 06 Jun 2019 14:02:08 GMT

Simple answer: yes. The fact that he couldn't be claimed, in a previous year does not prevent you from claiming him in the current year.

But, a better question is; should you have claimed him last year. Making too much money is actually not a reason. But, if the two co-op sessions meant that he was not a full time student student for parts of five calendar months, that would be a reason.

There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and standard ("Qualifying Relative" in IRS parlance even though they don't have to actually be related). There is no income limit for a QC but there is an age limit, a relationship test and residence test. Only a QC qualifies a taxpayer for the Earned Income Credit.

A child of a taxpayer can still be a “Qualifying Child” (QC) dependent, regardless of his/her income, if:

1. He is under age 19, or under 24 if a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, or is totally & permanently disabled

2. He did not provide more than 1/2 his own support. Scholarships are considered third party support and not as support provided by the student.

3. He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school or co-op sessions) for more than half the year

If academic credit was granted, for the co-op sessions, then that is considered as time as a student.

It's point #2 that made me think I couldn't. He was consi...

vam — Thu, 06 Jun 2019 14:02:10 GMT

It's point #2 that made me think I couldn't. He was considered a fulltime student. It was two co-ops covering about nine month. Do all three points need to be true?

Yes, all three points need to be true. For point #2, ,it...

Hal_Al — Thu, 06 Jun 2019 14:02:11 GMT

Yes, all three points need to be true.

For point #2, ,it doesn't matter how much he earned. What matters is how much he spent on support. Money he put into savings does not count as support he spent on him self.
The support value of the home you provided is the fair market rental value of the home plus utilities & other expenses divided by the number of occupants. The IRS has a worksheet that can be used to help with the support calculation. See: <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/teacher/worksheet_for_determining_support_4012.pdf">http://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/teacher/worksheet_for_determining_support_4012.pdf</a>

Point #1 is a bigger concern, that he must have been a full time student for 5 months. So, he did not qualify* unless he got academic credits for the co-op time or the time he was in school technically met the 5 month rule. For example, a student in school Jan 30 to May 2 appears to only have been in school 3 months, total. But since he was in school parts of January and May as well as all of Feb., March and April, he meets the 5 month rule.

*He did not qualify as a “Qualifying child” because he was not a full time student for five months. Then there becomes an income test to see if he qualifies as a “Qualifying Relative”. He doesn’t qualify as a qualifying relative if he made more than $4050, for the year.