Am I required to claim my child as a dependent. My 20 year old son meets all the criteria except I am unsure if he qualifies as a full time student. He is employed as an electrical apprentice. He attends a trade school with a 5 year program. He gets hands on training on the job and attends class 8 hours every other week. Is this considered a full time student?
Possibly. Note that a "full time student" for purposes of the dependent claim, is not the same as a full time student for purposes of claiming tuition credits. A school must be accredited by the Dept of Education and issue a 1098-T to claim a tuition credit, but a "school" for the dependent exemption means this:
Student defined.
To qualify as a student, your child must be, during some part of each of any 5 calendar months of the year:
A full-time student at a school that has a regular teaching staff, course of study, and a regularly enrolled student body at the school; or
A student taking a full-time, on-farm training course given by a school described in (1), or by a state, county, or local government agency.
Full-time student.
A full-time student is a student who is enrolled for the number of hours or courses the school considers to be full-time attendance.