I filed my disabled cousin as a dependent on my federal return and did not notice any increase in money for entering him. Can somebody help me figure this out?

[Anita01 · Accepted solution]

A disabled cousin would only qualify as what is called a Qualifying Relative.  They are not closely related enough to qualify you for the Earned Income Credit, nor would they qualify you for any child-related credits.  The most you would receive is a deduction of $4050 for their exemption.  

A deduction like this can only lower the amount of income on which you pay tax, and can get you back some of the tax you had taken out during the year.  If you are already getting a refund of the tax you had  taken out, you can't get anymore than that back for claiming them as a dependent.

[rezlats]

TO TURBOTAX EXPERT - Cousin is not listed on your pull down to qualify you as Head of Household. If you use "Other"  it does not calculate for you to be Head of Household, it still characterizes you as Single.  If you chose one of the other relatives named in the pull down, it will change you to Head of Household. 

Is this an error in the Turbotax Deluxe  program for 2024?   This is a big conflict causing sometimes thousands of $ beneficial to filer.

[Hal_Al]

Cousin is not a close enough relationship tp qualify you for Head of Household (HoH) filing status, even when that person qualifies as your dependent.  Basically the "qualifying person" rules for HoH are different that the Qualifying Relative rules for dependent.