Does my 45 yr old autistic son need to file a tax return?

[jkistner]

I normally claim my 45 yr old autistic son as a dependent.  However, in 2024 he has received $20,000 in SSDI and $8,600 in investment income.  Can I still claim him as a dependent and does he have to file tax returns for

2024?

[Vanessa A]

It depends.  If your son is permanently and totally disabled, then possibly.  

When you can claim him as a qualifying child there is not  an income limit, however, it does have a support side.  In order to claim him, you would need to provide over half of his support and he would have to have lived with you for more than 6 months during the year.  Since he had $28,600 in income for 2024, did he use that for his own support and was that over half of his support for the year?  

If HE did NOT provide over half of his support for the year, is permanently and totally disabled and he did live with you more than 6 months, then you would be able to claim him as a dependent. 

[jkistner]

I appreciate the reply but because of his age he is no longer a qualifying child, he has been a qualifying relative.  I think the unearned income limit applies, which he is over, doesn’t it?

[Vanessa A]

Actually, IF he is considered permanently and totally disabled, then his age does not matter.  The KEY is whether or not he is permanently and totally disabled. If he is, then he is considered to be a qualifying child and as long as he did not provide more than half of his financial support, then you can still claim him.

If he IS NOT totally and permanently disabled, then his investment income of $8.600 would disqualify him from being claimed as a dependent on your return.

Qualifying Child does not mean he qualifies for the Child Tax Credit as children no longer qualify for that once they turn 17, instead they qualify for the Other Dependent Credit but are still considered Qualifying Children as long as they meet the criteria to be treated as so.  

If you walk through the personal info questions on TurboTax, and select that he is  disabled (IF HE IS), then you will see the question asking whether or not he provided over half of his own support INSTEAD of the question regarding HOW much he makes.  

So the primary considerations is IF he is permanently and totally disabled, regardless of age, and did NOT use that money to provide over half of his own support, he IS still able to be claimed as a dependent.

IF he is NOT permanently and totally disabled, then his unearned income IS too high for him to be claimed as a dependent. 

Qualifying child

To qualify as a dependent, a child must also pass these tests:

• Relationship: Be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, half-sister or -brother, stepbrother, stepsister, adopted child or the child of one of these
• Age: Be under age 19 or under 24 if a full-time student, or any age if permanently and totally disabled
• Residency: Live with you for more than half the year, with some exceptions
• Support: Get more than half their financial support from you
• Joint return: Not file as married filing jointly unless only to claim a refund of taxes paid or withheld

See the full rules for a qualifying child

Qualifying relative

A qualifying relative must meet general rules for dependents and pass these tests:

• Not a qualifying child: Isn't your qualifying child or the qualifying child of any other taxpayer
• Member of household or relationship: Lives with you all year as a member of your household or is a specific type of relative
• Gross income: Has gross income under $5,050
• Support: Gets more than half their financial support from you

See the full rules for a qualifying relative

Permanent and total disability

A person has a permanent and total disability if both of the following apply:

• They can’t engage in any substantial gainful activity because of a physical or mental condition and
• A doctor determines their condition:
  • Has lasted continuously for at least a year or
  • Will last continuously for at least a year or
  • Can lead to death

[Hal_Al]

Q.  Can I still claim him as a dependent?

A. Yes. His  disability means he qualifies as a Qualifying Child dependent. So, it does not matter how much income he has. What matters is how much of his own support he provides (see below). 

Q. Does my 45 yr old autistic son need to file a tax return?

A. Yes. Dependents have a lower filing threshold than regular tax payers. They must file if they have more than $1300 of investment income. He checks the box, on his return, that indicates that he can be claimed as a dependent. He can still be a dependent even if he has to file a tax return. 

There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and Other ("Qualifying Relative" in IRS parlance even though they don't have to actually be related). There is no income limit for a QC but there is an age limit, student status, a relationship test and residence test.

A child of a taxpayer can still be a “Qualifying Child” (QC) dependent, regardless of his/her income, if:

1. He is under age 19, or under 24 if a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, or is totally & permanently disabled (at any age). The fact that he is receiving SSDI means he is disabled for tax purposes. 
2. He did not provide more than 1/2 his own support. Scholarships are excluded from the support calculation
3. He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school) for more than half the year

So, it doesn't matter how much he earned. What matters is how much he spent on support. Money he put into savings does not count as support he spent on himself.

The support value of the home, provided by the parent, is the fair market rental value of the home plus utilities & other expenses divided by the number of occupants.

The IRS has a worksheet that can be used to help with the support calculation. See: http://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/teacher/worksheet_for_determining_support_4012.pdf

See full dependent rules at: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Rules-for-Claiming-a-Dependent-on-Your-Tax-Ret...

[Hal_Al]

Q. When my son files a tax return, will he have to pay tax on his social security?

A. No. 

Social security only becomes taxable when added to sufficient other income. If you are otherwise required to file a tax return, you do need to enter it in TurboTax (TT). TT will determine the taxable portion.

Social security (including SSDI) becomes taxable when your income, including 1/2 your social security, reaches:

Married Filing Jointly(MFJ): $32,000

Single or head of household: $25,000

Married Filing Separately and lived with your spouse at any time during the tax year: $0

One half of his $20, 000 SSDI is $10,000. $10,000 + $8600 = $18,600. That's less than $25,000. So, none of his SSDI is taxable. 

After TurboTax (TT) calculates the taxable portion of SS, it puts the total amount of SS on line 6a of form 1040 and the taxable amount on line 6b ($0 in his case). TT also produces a worksheet  to show how the taxable amount is calculated.