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No. If someone else was eligible to claim you but didn't claim you, you are still required to check the box on your return that indicates that you were eligible to be claimed on someone else's return. Since you indicated this on your return, you are not eligible for the stimulus.
Below are the criteria to be claimed as a dependent:
There are two types of dependents, each subject to different rules:
For both types of dependents, you’ll need to answer the following questions to determine if you can claim them.
Dependent taxpayer test: The taxpayer, or spouse of the taxpayer if filing jointly, cannot be eligible to be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return.
Married Filing Jointly test: If you file a joint return with your spouse, you cannot be treated as a dependent. (This rule does not apply if the joint return was filed only as a claim for refund and no tax liability would exist for either spouse if they had filed separate returns).
Citizen or resident test: The person claimed as a dependent must be either a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, U.S. resident alien, or a resident of Canada or Mexico. An adopted child that lived with the taxpayer all year passes this test if the taxpayer is a U.S. citizen or U.S. national.
Qualifying Child
In addition to the above, you must be able to answer "yes" to all of the following questions to claim an exemption for your child.
Relationship test: The child must be the taxpayer’s son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, or a descendant of any of these, such as the taxpayer’s grandchild, niece, or nephew.
Residency test: The child must have lived with the taxpayer for more than half of 2019.
Age test: The child must be
• Under age 19 at the end of the tax year and younger than the taxpayer (or spouse), or
• Under age 24 at the end of 2019, a full-time student for any part of five calendar months during the tax year, and younger than the taxpayer (or spouse), or
• Permanently and totally disabled at any age
Support Test: The child cannot have provided more than 1/2 of his/her own support during the tax year. Welfare, TANF, and scholarships received by the child are not considered support.
Qualifying Relative
Relationship or Member of Household Test: To be considered a qualifying relative, a person must be:
Not a Qualifying Child Test: The relative cannot be a qualifying child of any other taxpayer for the year.
Gross Income Test: The relative's gross income must be less than $4200 for the year. Gross income is all income that is not tax-exempt. Examples of gross income include taxable Social Security benefits, taxable unemployment compensation, and certain scholarships and fellowships (i.e., monies used to pay higher education expenses other than tuition, fees, supplies, books, and course-required equipment).
Support Test: The taxpayer must have provided over 1/2 of the relative's support during the year. This test does not apply to persons who qualify as dependents under the children of divorced or separated parents rule and multiple support agreements.
There was a a checked box on my 1040 that should not have been checked. The box noting that "Someone can claim my spouse as dependent". I only discovered that this was checked when inquiring with the IRS regarding my Stimulus payment. They said I was ineligible because that box was checked. I had noticed that it was also checked the previous year I filed with TurboTax, but I never checked this before. This was nothing that I checked myself, but somehow it defaulted or some such thing, now I'm out $1,200. The IRS claimed I could be credited next year, but had no idea of how that would be done or what I would need to do to obtain it. If anyone could shed light on this for me, please let me know. Thank you.
This box is checked when you answer "Yes" to the question "Can you be claimed as a dependent on another person's tax return?"
You will get the credit in 2021 when you file your 2020 tax return without this indicator.
Thank you, Susan. That's more assuring than the response from the IRS. Stay well.
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