Can i claim a child thats not biologically mine that i helped take care of

[Brickard25]

If you answer yes to these you can 

Did child live with you? 

And if you answer yes  is anyone else claiming the child cuz if so then don't try it will red flag u 

[Brickard25]

You can also claim a child you took care of even if they didn't live with you but it's alot trickier 

[macuser_22]

It is a lot more then "helped take care of".

Note then #1 means that if a parent CAN claim the child then an unrelated person cannot claim the child even if the parent does not actually claim the child.

---Tests to be a Qualifying Relative (& Unrelated Persons)---
(Must meet ALL of these tests to be a dependent)

1. The person cannot be your qualifying child or the qualifying child of any other taxpayer.

2. The person either must be related to you, or must live with you all year (all 365 days - There are exceptions for temporary absences such as school, illness, business, vacation, military service) as a member of your household.

3. The person's gross income for the year must be less than $4,200 (tax-exempt income, such as certain social security benefits, is not included in gross income)

4. You must provide more than half of the person's total support** for the year.

5. The person is not filing a joint return.

In any case, the person must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. resident alien, U.S. national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico

The above is simplified; see IRS Publication 501 for full information.
https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501#en_US_2018_publink1000220939

** Worksheet for determining support
https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501#en_US_2018_publink1000292527

[macuser_22]

---

@Brickard25 wrote:

You can also claim a child you took care of even if they didn't live with you but it's alot trickier 

---

Not an unrelated child.  An unrelated must live with the the entire year.

[Brickard25]

I do foster care and I claim them I just select the months I had them 

[BarbaraW22]

It depends. In order to claim someone as a dependent, the person must be your qualifying child or qualifying relative.

In order to be a qualifying child, the person must: 

• Be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them
• Be under age 19 or under age 24 and a student at the end of the year OR permanently and totally disabled
• Have lived with you for more than half of the year
• Not have provided more than half of his or her own support
• Not be filing a joint return for the year

In order to be a qualifying relative, the person:

• Can't be your qualifying child or the qualifying child of any other taxpayer
• Must live with you all year as a member of your household or must be related to you
• Must have gross income of less than $4,200 for the year
• You must provide more than half of the person's total support

Please click here to review IRS Publication 501 for more information on claiming a dependent.

@pedrogonzalez457