The
children may qualify as dependents, but because they are not related, her children cannot be your qualifying child for the child tax credit, earned income credit or Head of Household filing status.
A person can still be an
other dependent (Qualifying relative in IRS parlance, even though they do not
have to actually be related), if not a Qualifying Child, if he meets the 6
tests for claiming a dependent:
1. Closely Related OR live
with you ALL year
2. His/her gross taxable income for the year must be less than $3,900 (2013)
3. You must have provided
more than 1/2 his support
Whether a qualifying child or qualifying relative:
4. He must be a US citizen or resident of the US, Canada
or Mexico
5. He must not file a joint
return with his spouse
6. He must not be the
qualifying child of another taxpayer
He must have a US social
security number or tax identification number (TIN)
In addition to the above requirements, to
claim your boy/girlfriend's children, they must meet all of the above
requirements and:
--- your boy/girlfriend must not be required
to file a return,
--- he/she does not file a return claiming the
children
Whether it affects their benefits would have to be answered by the agency providing the benefits.
