claiming a 17 yr old

[oshomro]

My brother was told that he can't get the standard deduction for his high school son that turned 18 in Jan for his 2019 taxes. This does not make sense to me and I find so many different answers. The child still lives at home and will just graduate from high school on 5/31/20 and will be going to college. The child did work hard summer of 2019 and throughout school. From what I looked up, it appears that the child can file taxes but not claim himself as as an exemption since the parents should be able to. Is there a wage limit that supposedly is stopping my brother from claiming his son?  I am not sure the exact dollar amount the child made, but should that matter?  This caused my brother to have to pay in and I just don't understand why turning 17 makes such an issue. He has an upcoming daughter turning this in 2 yrs, but my sister was able to claim her 20 yr old daughter as an exemption (goes to college) on their taxes. Confused!! Please help. 

[DoninGA]

The 17 year old is claimed as a dependent under the Qualifying Child rules where his gross income in 2019 is not relevant.  The child can file their own tax return and indicate on their return that they can be claimed as a dependent.

To be a Qualifying Child -

1. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
2. The child must be (a) under age 19 at the end of the year, (b) under age 24 at the end of the year and a full-time student or (c) any age and permanently and totally disabled.
3. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. Temporary absences while away at college are considered living with you.
4. The child must not have provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
5. If the child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person, you must be the person entitled to claim the child as a qualifying child.
6. The child must be a U.S. citizen or U.S., Canada or Mexico resident for some portion of the year.
7. The child must be younger than you unless disabled.

[Anonymous]

there is no standard deduction for a dependent on the parents' return. under the conditions you describe the child would be a dependent and the parents can claim him but their standard deduction or itemized deductions won't change.   Maybe this is why you get different answers.  The tax law changes starting for the year 2018 eliminated the deduction for dependents. 

[xmasbaby0]

Perhaps your brother misunderstood something.  What he cannot get for a child who is over 16 is the child tax credit of up to $2000.  You lose that credit when the child turns 17, and instead when you claim the child as a dependent you get the $500 credit for other dependents.  His son can still be claimed as his dependent.  The loss of the CTC may have affected your brother's refund or tax due in an unexpected way.  Many people are taken by surprise when they lose that credit.

As already stated, his son can file his own tax return and seek a tax refund of any tax withheld from his own wages without affecting the parents' tax refund or tax due.  

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1900923-what-is-the-child-tax-credit

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/does-my-childdependent-qualify-for-the-child-tax-credit-or-the-credit-f...

[rredway62]

You stated the standard deduction doesnt change for a 17 year old ,junior -going to highschool. But Do you mean the reduced standard deduction of $500.00 doesnt change or the standard deduction of $2500 doesnt change?

[xmasbaby0]

You are getting very confused about the terminology.  You are confused about what a "standard deduction" is.

Parents can get the child tax credit on their returns for children who are younger than 17---that credit can lower their tax due, and up to $1400 of the child tax credit can be added to the refund---for a total of $2000.  You asked about a child who was older----a parent who claims a dependent child older than 16 can get the $500 credit for other dependents instead of the child tax credit.   That credit lowers the tax the parent owes--it is not added as a refund.

The standard deduction is something different.   The taxpayer (and spouse if married filing a joint return) have an amount of income that is "tax free" called the standard deduction.   The amount of the standard deduction vary according to the filing status:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/credits-and-deductions/help/what-s-my-standard-deduction/00/26370

And....if you have a dependent child who is filing their own tax return:

The standard deduction amount for an individual who may be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer cannot exceed the greater of $1,100 or the sum of $350 and the individual’s earned income (not to exceed the regular standard deduction amount).