21 y.o undergrad student wondering if it's okay filing independently

[DanielH315]

Hello there,

I am currently filing my taxes for the first time with the intention of claiming myself as an independent. I did not receive a stimulus check so my main goal was to receive the $1400 and also not have to pay taxes due to the deductions. For brief background, I made roughly $10,000 from summer internship + investments. I am 21 years old who is a senior in college and live in a dorm - so I only live in my parents' home for roughly 4 months. My home state is CA and I go to school in IN. My parents are well off and are in the upper level tax bracket.

Here's the problem. Regarding my student expenses, my dad currently pays half the college expense (tuition, room, etc) and I pay the other half via a loan from a private lender which was cosigned by my dad. Does this mean that I must check the box where they ask if someone else can claim me as a dependent EVEN IF nobody does? I was under the impression that I could still file independently but I've been reading forums that state that I must be filing dependently... This also means I end up paying couple hundred dollars in taxes whereas if I filed independently, I could receive $1400. My parents do not plan on claiming me as a dependent but if I need to file dependently, then they should right? Sorry for the myriad of questions.

[JulieS]

Whether or not you can file independent, depends on whether your provide more than half of your total support. 

For this calculation, you count the amount paid by your dad as paid by others and the amount paid by the loan as paid by you, since you are supposed to pay it back in the future. 

So it sounds like your student expenses are 50/50, so you need to look at other expenses and who pays them.

If you are paying for your food, entertainment, clothing, insurance, transportation expenses, etc. that would mean you are paying more than half.

You will need to figure out if you are paying more than half of the total. If you are, you can say that no one can claim you as a dependent. 

[DanielH315]

I thought student expenses were 50/50 but if my parents cosigned my loan then I was under the impression that it means that I need to be claimed as a dependent.

[ErnieS0]

Total support is taken into account in deciding whether or not your are a dependent, not just your college expenses. If you do not provide for more than half your support, then you will be a dependent.

You can use this IRS Worksheet for Determining Support.

[DanielH315]

It seems like my dad does pay for more than half of my expenses. This means that I can not file as an independent and thus won't be able to receive the stimulus check? If this is the case, then my parents should obviously put me as a dependent? 

[JulieS]

Yes, that is correct. If you are not paying more than half of your support, you should say you are being claimed as a dependent and let your parents claim you.