Parents

[spiderman3003]

Dear team, 

My parents lives with me. I do not get any rent or income from them.  

Can I claim them as the dependent if they are filling their own taxes due to foreign income? 

Can I claim them as the dependent if they get SSI? 

TurboTax software said I can not claim as they are filling their own taxes for both of the above situation.  

Thanks

Stay safe

[xmasbaby0 · Accepted solution]

If your parents file a joint return you cannot claim them as your dependents; you might want to review some of the rules for claiming a dependent, and try the IRS interactive interview for who you can claim.

IRS interview to help determine who can be claimed:

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/who-can-i-claim-as-a-dependent

WHO CAN I CLAIM AS A DEPENDENT?

You can claim a child, relative, friend, fiance (etc.) as a dependent on your 2019 taxes as long as they meet the following requirements:

Qualifying child

• They are related to you.

• They cannot be claimed as a dependent by someone else.

• They are a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or   Mexican resident.

• They are not filing a joint return with their spouse.

• They are under the age of 19 (or 24 for full-time students).

• No age limit for permanently and totally disabled children

  •      They live with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).

Qualifying relative

• They don't have to be related to you (despite the name).

• They cannot be claimed as a dependent by someone else.

• They are a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.

• They are not filing a joint return with their spouse.

• They lived with you the entire year.

• They made less than $4200  (not counting Social Security)

• You provided more than half of their financial support. More info

When you add someone as a dependent, we'll ask a series of questions to make sure you can claim them.

Related Information:

• Does a dependent have to live with me?

• What does "financially support another person" mean?

• Can I claim a newborn baby?

You also may want to be aware that if you claim your parents as dependents they do NOT get the stimulus money of $2400 for a married couple; all you get for claiming them is a $500 credit for other dependents for each one.

[Opus 17 · Accepted solution]

To claim your parents as dependents, they do not have to live with you but you must meet three conditions:

1) Their gross taxable income must be less than $4200.

2) You must provide more than half their total living expenses.

3) They can’t file a joint tax return.

SSI is not taxable income but it does count as support they provide themselves, along with any other income they have.  

If their income was less than $4200, they would not be required to file a tax return. If the income of one spouse is more than $4200 and they file a joint return, you can’t claim them. If the income of one spouse is over $4200 and that spouse files a separate return, you might be able to claim the other spouse without income.

 If one or both of your parents are not disqualified by the $4200 taxable income test, you would then have to add up all of their living expenses and determine whether you provide more than half.

Support that you provide for them includes a percentage of your home expenses, including rent, utilities, insurance, food, and so forth. As well as any personal expenses you pay for such as clothing, travel, and medical expenses.

[Hal_Al]

@xmasbaby0  -

The Qualifying Relative bullet points

• They don't have to be related to you (despite the name).

• They lived with you the entire year.

are not two separate rules.  It's usually stated something like this: 

• Closely Related OR live with the taxpayer ALL year