1098-T question

[LE1972]

If my son made less than $4,300.00 in income on his W-2. Can I claim him as a dependent on my taxes and also input his 1098-T information on mine even though he is filing taxes?

[RaifH]

Yes, probably. As long as no one else is claiming him, and in the case of split custody, either you are the custodial parent or have an agreement with the other parent and your son did not provide more than half of his own support.

If you are claiming your son, then you can include the 1098-T on your return and claim any education credits that he is eligible for. In this case, he can't claim it on his even though he is filing taxes. 

[Hal_Al]

You really haven't provided enough information about you and your child's living situation to answer the dependent question.

As to claiming the Tuition Credit, the 1098-T goes with the student's dependency, regardless of who paid the tuition and other qualified expenses. 

There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and Other ("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, student status, a relationship test and residence test.

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 excluded from the support calculation
3. He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school) for more than half the year

So, 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, provided by the parent, 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: http://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/teacher/worksheet_for_determining_support_4012.pdf

Furthermore, there is a rule that says IF somebody else CAN claim him as a dependent, he is not allowed to claim himself. If he has sufficient income (usually more than $12,550), he can & should still file taxes. In TurboTax, he indicates that somebody else can claim him as a dependent, at the personal information section.  TT will check that box on form 1040.

A person can still be a Qualifying relative dependent, if not a Qualifying Child, if he meets the 6 tests for claiming a dependent:

1. Closely Related OR live with the taxpayer ALL year
2. His/her gross taxable income for the year must be less than $4300 
3. The taxpayer must have provided more than 1/2 his support (note the difference in the support test for a QC)

In either case:

4. He must be a US citizen or resident of the US, Canada or Mexico
5. He must not file a joint return with his spouse or be claiming a dependent of his own
6. He must not be the qualifying child of another taxpayer

See full dependent rules at: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Rules-for-Claiming-a-Dependent-on-Your-Tax-Ret...