Childs income on parents return

[cindy-mcneely]

My 16 yr. old son worked in 2016.  Federal taxes were withheld.  How do I claim that?  I provide more than 50% of his support.

[xmasbaby0 · Accepted solution]

If your dependent has a W-2 for his after-school job, summer job, etc. you do not include the information on your own return. You can still claim your child as a dependent on your own return.  He/she can file his own return for a refund of some of his withheld wages (he won’t get back anything for Social Security or Medicare), but MUST indicate on it that he can be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return.  (Supervise this closely or prepare it for him!)

If your dependent’s earnings were over $400 and were reported on a 1099Misc then he must file a return and pay self-employment tax for Social Security and Medicare.  You may want to use this version of TT for that:

https://turbotax.intuit.com/taxfreedom/