My son turned 18 on Dec 24th, but I still support him by providing housing, food, utilities, etc. Is he considered a dependent?

Yes, at age 18, he can still be claimed as your qualifying child dependent, but you have lost the child tax credit when he turned 17.  You now can only get the $500 credit for other dependents, which is non-refundable.  That credit can be used to reduce tax that you owe.

 

IRS interview to help determine who can be claimed:

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

 

If he goes to college as a full-time student you can claim him while he is a student until the year he turns 24.

 

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.