I have paid all of the household expenses for 2024, why cant I claim Head of Household?

[jmuckenthaler]

I was widowed in March of 2023, I have a dependent son who has no income. Why cant I claim Head of Household for 2024?

[Vanessa A]

You probably can based on the info you provided, or may be able to file as Qualifying Widow depending on your sons age for two years after your spouses death.  This actually results in a better tax situation for you as you would still be able to use the standard deduction of a married couple filing jointly instead of Head of household which is lower. 

If TurboTax is telling you that you do not qualify, please revisit all of your answers in the personal info section to be sure you are properly claiming your son and that you have selected that you were widowed in 2023. 
 

Who is a Qualifying Widow(er)? Taxpayers who do not remarry in the year their spouse dies can file j... For the two years following the year of death, the surviving spouse may be able to use the Qualifying Widow(er) filing status. To qualify, the taxpayer must: 

•  Be entitled to file a joint return for the year the spouse died, regardless of whether the taxpayer actually filed a joint return that year. 
•  Have had a spouse who died in either of the two prior years. The taxpayer must not remarry before the end of the current tax year. 
• Have a child, stepchild, or adopted child who qualifies as the taxpayer’s dependent for the year or would qualify as the taxpayer’s dependent except that he or she does not meet the gross income test, or does not meet the joint return test, or except that the taxpayer may be claimed as a dependent of another taxpayer. 
• Live with this child in the taxpayer’s home all year, except for temporary absences. 
•  Have paid more than half the cost of keeping up the home for the year.

[xmasbaby0]

Is your dependent son a child?   If you have a qualifying child dependent you could be filing as a Qualifying Surviving Spouse and you would get the higher standard deduction for a joint return.

Or --Is your son an adult who can only be claimed as a qualifying relative?

IRS interview to help determine who can be claimed:

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/who-can-i-claim-as-a-dependent

WHO CAN I CLAIM AS A DEPENDENT?

You can claim a child, relative, friend, or fiancé (etc.) as a dependent on your 2024 taxes as long as they meet the following requirements:

Qualifying child

• They're related to you.
• They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
• They're a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.
• They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse.
• They're under the age of 19 (or 24 for full-time students).
• No age limit for permanently and totally disabled children.
• They lived with you for more than half the year (exceptions apply).
• They didn't provide more than half of their own support for the year.

Qualifying relative

• They don't have to be related to you (despite the name).
• They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else.
• They're a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident.
• They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse.
• They lived with you the entire year (exceptions apply).
• They made less than $5050 in 2024 (not counting Social Security)
• You provided more than half of their financial support.

When you add someone as a dependent, we'll ask a series of questions to make sure you can claim them. There may be other tax benefits you can get when you claim a dependent.

Related Information:

• What does "financially support another person" mean?
• What is a "qualifying person" for Head of Household?