MY DEPENDENT HAD A JOB
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 or 1099NEC then he must file a return and pay self-employment tax for Social Security and Medicare.
You might also want to use free software from the IRS Free File versions:
Just a follow-up question, for this same dependent, there were no federal taxes withheld on any of their w-2's I know we would not get any federal refund, but should we file anyway?
If no federal or state tax was withheld there is no benefit to filing a tax return except for giving your child some practice in filling out a tax return.
Yes it would be good to practice filling out the forms. Actually by hand. Here is the 1040 and schedules 1-3. But she probably won't need the schedules.
Here is the IRS 2021 Form 1040
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040.pdf
And 2021 Instructions
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf
2021 Tax and EIC Tables
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040tt.pdf
Sch 1 : https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s1.pdf
Sch 2 : https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s2.pdf
Sch 3 : https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s3.pdf