My dependent son (Age 15) has $1,400 of W-2 income, and $700 of self-employment income from refereeing. He has one deductible expense ($68 for a uniform.) Does this qualify for the TurboTax free edition for the Federal return?
Sorry--no. Self employment income cannot be entered using the Free Edition. He needs a Schedule C for the uniform expense and has to pay self-employment tax for Social Security and Medicare.
MY DEPENDENT HAD A JOB
If your dependent has a W-2 for his after-school job, summer job, etc. you do not include the information on your own return. You can still claim your child as a dependent on your own return. He/she can file his own return for a refund of some of his withheld wages (he won’t get back anything for Social Security or Medicare), but MUST indicate on it that he can be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return. (Supervise this closely or prepare it for him!)
If your dependent’s earnings were over $400 and were reported on a 1099Misc or 1099NEC then he must file a return and pay self-employment tax for Social Security and Medicare.
You might also want to use free software from the IRS Free File versions:
https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/