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My son is autistic should i mark him as disabled on the page asking his info

 
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2 Replies

My son is autistic should i mark him as disabled on the page asking his info

Is your son a child?   There is no tax advantage or credit for saying your child is disabled on a federal tax return.   If he is older than 12 and you have to pay someone to take care of him so you can work you can still get the childcare credit; or if he is older than 19 you can still claim him as a qualifying child even if he is not a full-time student.   Your state laws might be different.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

My son is autistic should i mark him as disabled on the page asking his info

Probably not.  Autism does not make one incapable of working. Many autistic persons hold jobs and earn income.

 

The IRS defines disabled this way:

Permanent and total disability.

You have a permanent and total disability if you can't engage in any substantial gainful activity because of your physical or mental condition. A qualified physician must certify that the condition has lasted or can be expected to last continuously for 12 months or more, or that the condition can be expected to result in death.
Substantial gainful activity.

Substantial gainful activity is the performance of significant duties over a reasonable period of time while working for pay or profit, or in work generally done for pay or profit. Full-time work (or part-time work done at your employer's convenience) in a competitive work situation for at least the minimum wage conclusively shows that you are able to engage in substantial gainful activity.

Claiming disabled has no tax benefit unless child care was necessary so that you could work that normally cuts off after age 12, but is allowed if the care is necessary for an older disabled child.

It also allows claiming a Qualified Child as a dependent beyond the age of 18 and would do nothing for a younger child.

**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**

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