@patsfan761 wrote:
Now I'm confused because I read something that said if they earned less than $12,400 they do not have to file a return but they can if they want to recover any withheld income tax and that I could still claim them.
I just want to do the right thing.
Your question was about being a dependent, not whether he has to file a tax return.
If he is age 19 or older and not a full time student under the age of 24, then you would only be able to claim him as a dependent under the Qualifying Relative rules. The income test under the rule is gross income less than $4,300.
To be 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.
3. The person's gross income for the year must be less than $4,300 (social security does not count) in 2020
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 or a U.S., Canada, or Mexico resident for some part of the year.
6. The person must not file a joint return with their spouse.
