Am I able to claim my girlfriend and/or her 10 yr old daughter?

[jj11789]

My girlfriend is a FT student. She and her daughter lived with me and I supported them all year. She has full custody and rights to claim her daughter but only worked 2 months totaling $2,000 for the year.

[bwa · Accepted solution]

You can claim a boyfriend or girlfriend and their children as dependents if they are your qualifying relatives.

Boyfriend/Girlfriend:  To be a qualifying relative (dependent) you don't have to be an actual relative - however,

• whoever claims them must provide more than 1/2 of the individuals support,
• they must not earn more than $4,060 in 2016 in   (social security doesn't count),
• they must not file a joint return with another
• If not an actual relative, they must live with the person claiming them all days of the year
• they must be a US citizen or resident of the US, Canada or Mexico
• they are not a qualifying child of another taxpayer.

Boyfriend/Girlfriend's Children:  To claim your boy/girlfriend's children who are not also your children, your boy/girlfriend must not be required to file a return,

• he/she does not file a return claiming the children, and
• they meet all of the requirements above to be a qualifying relative.

An additional issue - a boyfriend/girlfriend and their child (who is not also your child) will not qualify you for Head of Household because you are not related. Also, the child will not qualify you for earned income credit, child tax credit or the child and dependent care credit (again, because you're not related.)