[Anonymous]

Quick question…

I’m filing for my parents’ return and I am confused whether I can claim my sister as a dependent on their return.

She was born in 1991. thus turned 24 in Feb of 2015. So at the end of 2015, she was 24 years old, not under 24 years old.

She was a full time student.

Can I claim her on my parents return? She earned around $5.5k (I will file for her to get the taxes withheld back). I’m just confused if her age is an issue to qualify as a dependent.

Thnks!

[taxgeek83]

https://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/content/globalmedia/table_2_dependency_exemption_relative_4012.pdf

Looks like the answer is no….

She doesn't meet the age test for qualifying child, so then we look to qualifying relative. Her income fails that test.

[Anonymous]

This is for qualifying relative. I'm asking about qualifying child…my sister being claimed on my parents' return?

[taxgeek83]

See above – posted a little too quickly the first time – sorry! 🙂

[Anonymous]

Thank you, that's what I was thinking. Since she turned 24 in Feb, 2015, she wouldn't qualify to be dependent, correct? Not under the age of 24..

I asked one of the CPA, and she said she's considered dependent because she's a full time student…but I didn't think that was correct.

[taxgeek83]

Not by my understanding. Full time student status applies to someone who's under 24 at the end of the tax year, which she wasn't. If she had made under $4,000 at her job and met all other requirements, she would qualify under the qualifying relative test, but her income put her outside of that realm.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking to.

Okay so now that she's not a dependent, can my parents claim her tuition expenses? or does that have to be on her return?

[jm962011]

are you using an HR Block/Turbo Tax/Tax ACT to calculate their return or doing it on paper yourself?? I would highly recommend one of those software programs to at least walk you through these situations… you don't have to pay anything until the end which means you can use the program to help you figure out what your refund should be.

Just a suggestion. I mean, you're probably not the only person with these questions and these software programs are written relatively simple enough to where you just answer yes or no on the questions.

[taxgeek83]

She has to claim her own dependency exemption, so the tuition expenses are hers as well.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf

[Author]

Replies