topic I was18yo homeschool student in 2025, Do I qualify as a full-time student? in Education

I was18yo homeschool student in 2025, Do I qualify as a full-time student?

user17714517748 — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:09:33 GMT

I was a senior in high-school from January-August 2025. I was a homeschool student during that time and received disability benefits through my mother until August. Do I qualify as a full-time student on my 2025 taxes? I will not be claimed on my parent's taxes as a dependent. I used the money received to pay my medical expenses, purchase my clothing, and for other personal expenses.

Re: I was18yo homeschool student in 2025, Do I qualify as a full-time student?

xmasbaby0 — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:20:51 GMT

Saying you are a full time high school student has no effect on your tax refund or tax due. At the age of 18, you can still be claimed as a qualifying child dependent by your parent(s). If the only income was the Social Security disability benefits, you do not have to file a tax return. If you had any other income like from an after school or summer job, then the SSA1099 and your other income goes on a tax return, which you can file to seek a refund if tax was withheld from your paychecks (box 2 or 17 of your W-2). Not sure why you are saying you will not be claimed--unless your parent does not file a return. Your refund or tax due are not affected by being claimed as a dependent.

Re: I was18yo homeschool student in 2025, Do I qualify as a full-time student?

Vanessa A — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:25:08 GMT

How old were you on December 31? Why will you not be claimed? Do you live with your parents? How did you receive your home schooling?

If you only paid for medical expenses, clothing and other personal expenses, that may not be enough to say that you paid for over half of your expenses. Support also includes housing, utilities, food and education.

If you were 18 at the end of 2025, being a student does not change your ability to be claimed as a dependent.

Was it online via a school with a regular teaching staff, a course of study and a student body or something else? This is the criteria for the schooling that would be required for you to be considered a full time student
If your schooling was informal such as your parents were teaching you based on what they felt you needed to learn, this would not be considered a full time student.

If you only have disability income, then you would not need to file a return. Also, if you are considered totally and permanently disabled, then your parents would be able to claim you as a dependent regardless of your age as long as you did not provide over half of your own support and lived with them for more than half of the year.

To claim someone as a Qualifying Relative, they must be:

Your child ( including step children, adoptive children and foster children) or a descendent of them
Your sibling (including half siblings) or a child of your sibling or a sibling-in-law
Your parent or grandparents, including step parents and in laws
Any other person that lived with you for the entire tax year
Not a qualifying child of another taxpayer
Someone that you provided over half of their support for during the tax year
Has less than $5,200 in income (not counting social security)

The following criteria must be met to claim someone as a qualifying child:

Your child (including adopted and foster children), your sibling, or a descendent of any of them.
Age 18 or younger at the end of the tax year OR under 24 (and younger than you and your spouse) if they are a full-time student or any age if they are totally and permanently disabled
Lived with you for more than 6 months during the tax year
They did not provide more than half of their own support (social security does not count)
They did not file a joint return, unless it was to claim a refund

Re: I was18yo homeschool student in 2025, Do I qualify as a full-time student?

Hal_Al — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:51:25 GMT

Yes, you probably qualify as a full time student for 2025. But, as others have said, it probably doesn't matter.

It depends on what you are trying to accomplish by being an independent tax filing fulltime student and not be claimed as a dependent on your parent's return.

Basically, there is nothing to gain.

With the 2018 tax law change, most students will get the same refund whether they claim themselves or not. The personal exemption has been eliminated and the standard deduction increased.

However, you only qualify for an education credit, if you are not a dependent. But, there's a new urban myth among college students that says they can get a $1000 from the government just for filing a tax form. For most of them, they simply aren't eligible. A full time unmarried student, under age 24, even if you don't qualify as a dependent, is only eligible for the refundable portion of the American Opportunity Credit if he supports himself by working. You cannot be supporting yourself on parental support, 529 plans or student loans & grants. It is usually best if the parent claims that credit.