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Level 2
November 20, 2022
Question

transferred post 9/11 gi bill

  • November 20, 2022
  • 1 reply
  • 10 views

I transferred my post 9-11 GI bill benefits to my child. The school tuition payments directly from the VA and my child gets a monthly living allowance from the VA.  Are the tuition payments paid to the school by the VA from the benefits I transferred considered her own support, my support or the VAs support? (i’m trying to figure out if she is still a dependent)

    1 reply

    Hal_Al
    Level 15
    Level 15
    November 20, 2022

    Q. Is she  still my dependent?

    A.  Yes, she is still your qualifying child dependent.

     

    Q. Are  VA  the benefits I transferred considered her own support, my support or the VA's support? 

    A. They're not her own support.

     

    There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and Other ("Qualifying Relative" in IRS parlance even though they don't have to actually be related). There is no income limit for a QC but there is an age limit, student status, a relationship test and residence test. 

    The support test is different for each type. The support test, for a QC, is only that the child didn't provide more than half his own support. The support test for a Qualifying Relative is that the taxpayer provided more than half the relative's support.

    A child of a taxpayer can still be a “Qualifying Child” (QC) dependent, regardless of his/her income, if:

    1. He is under age 19, or under 24 if a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, or is totally & permanently disabled
    2. He did not provide more than 1/2 his own support. Scholarships are excluded from the support calculation
    3. He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school) for more than half the year

     

    In the unlikely event that she needs to be your Qualifying Relative dependent, instead of a QC,  a little more research may be needed.