Why can't I claims my mother as a dependent , who is legally blind. She makes about 5400 a year on a pension

[MichaelDC · Accepted solution]

Your mother would be considered a "Qualifying Relative" and a dependent had she not had income more than $4,050.

Here are the requirements:

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 are 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.
• They made less than $4,050 in 2017.
• You provided more than half of their financial support. More info

[ckaraszkiewicz]

She is legally blind and lives with us.  I would like to see anyone live off of 5400 a year.  I can only shake my head at the reasoning.

[MichaelDC]

Agreed. I'm sure she costs YOU more than $4,050. I imagine the IRS has to draw the line somewhere. It's pretty low though.

[macuser_22]

It has nothing to do with how much you need to live on.   $4,050 is the personal exemption amount.  It is a matter of who gets to claim the personal exemption.  If you earn more than the exemption then another tax payer cannot claim your personal exemption.   That is how Congress wrote the law.    The new tax law eliminated the  $4,050 exemption starting next year.