My parents paid for my college, but my wife paid for hers. We both attended full time last year for 1 semester. This was also our 4th year so it has only been claimed 3 times. Could both of us get the AOTC if we are married filing jointly? Also, we did not get married till the end of the year, and both lived separately with our parents for more than 6 months out of the year (so they supported us for over half the year). But we were going to file jointly therefore our parents could not claim us as dependents.
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If you qualify to be claimed as dependents your parents can choose to not claim you on their return but you also cannot be claimed on your own return. It is a convoluted system of the tax code.
There are two types of dependents--qualifying child and qualifying relative. There is no specific income limit for a qualifying child dependent for you to claim them. Here are the requirements:
1. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
2. The child must be (a) under age 19 at the end of the year, (b) under age 24 at the end of the year and a full-time student, or (c) any age and permanently and totally disabled.
3. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. Temporary absences while away at college are considered living with you.
4. The child must not have provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
5. If the child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person, you must be the person entitled to claim the child as a qualifying child.
6. The child must be a U.S. citizen or U.S., Canada or Mexico resident for some portion of the year.
7. The child must be younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly) unless disabled.
If the person doesn't meet the qualifying child requirements, then there is an income limit to be claimed as a qualifying relative:
1. The person cannot be your qualifying child or the qualifying child of any other taxpayer. A child is not the qualifying child of any other taxpayer if the child's parent (or any other person for whom the child is defined as a qualifying child) is not required to file an income tax return or files an income tax return only to get a refund on income tax withheld.
2. The person either (a) must be related to you or (b) must live with you all year as a member of your household. (and must not be in violation of local law)
3. The person's gross taxable income for the year must be less than $4,050 in 2016.
4. You must provide more than half of the person's total support for the year.
5. The person must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. resident alien, U.S. national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico.
If a person meets the requirement to be claimed as a dependent by someone else, they must indicate that on their tax return if they are required to file one.
so-highlig??????
If you qualify to be claimed as dependents your parents can choose to not claim you on their return but you also cannot be claimed on your own return. It is a convoluted system of the tax code.
There are two types of dependents--qualifying child and qualifying relative. There is no specific income limit for a qualifying child dependent for you to claim them. Here are the requirements:
1. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
2. The child must be (a) under age 19 at the end of the year, (b) under age 24 at the end of the year and a full-time student, or (c) any age and permanently and totally disabled.
3. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. Temporary absences while away at college are considered living with you.
4. The child must not have provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
5. If the child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person, you must be the person entitled to claim the child as a qualifying child.
6. The child must be a U.S. citizen or U.S., Canada or Mexico resident for some portion of the year.
7. The child must be younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly) unless disabled.
If the person doesn't meet the qualifying child requirements, then there is an income limit to be claimed as a qualifying relative:
1. The person cannot be your qualifying child or the qualifying child of any other taxpayer. A child is not the qualifying child of any other taxpayer if the child's parent (or any other person for whom the child is defined as a qualifying child) is not required to file an income tax return or files an income tax return only to get a refund on income tax withheld.
2. The person either (a) must be related to you or (b) must live with you all year as a member of your household. (and must not be in violation of local law)
3. The person's gross taxable income for the year must be less than $4,050 in 2016.
4. You must provide more than half of the person's total support for the year.
5. The person must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. resident alien, U.S. national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico.
If a person meets the requirement to be claimed as a dependent by someone else, they must indicate that on their tax return if they are required to file one.
so-highlig??????
You can indeed file jointly and claim themselves and ed credits. A child who chooses to file jointly with their spouse for any reason other than simply a refund of tax withheld CANNOT be a qualifying child dependent of their parents. It's always the married child's choice. You are free to file jointly, claim yourselves because you are not a qualifying child dpendent of your parents, and claim your education credits.
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