How to Determine if a Student Is Your Dependent

A student may be your dependent even if she is away at school or had a gross income of $2,800 or more in the tax year.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• IRS Forms
• Financial Calculator
• Paper And Pencils

1. Verify that the student was enrolled full-time in a school during at least five months of the tax year. If not, she is not considered a student.

2. Verify that the student is a qualified relative. She must be your child, stepchild, adopted child, grandchild, great-grandchild, brother, half-brother, stepbrother, sister, half-sister, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, parent, stepparent, parent-in-law, grandparent, great-grandparent, brother or sister of a parent, or child of a brother or sister.

3. Verify, if the student is not a qualified relative, that the student lived as a member of your household for the entire year. Absences due to schooling, illness, vacation or occupational travels are considered temporary and do not mean that the student was not a member of your household.

4. Determine that the student was a citizen or resident of the United States or a resident of Canada or Mexico for some time during the tax year.

5. Make sure the student is not filing a "married filing jointly" return for the tax year. If the student does file jointly, it is OK if she had no tax liability and if neither the student nor her spouse would have a tax liability if they filed separately.

6. Determine that the student's gross income for the tax year was less than $2,800, or that the student was under 24 years of age for the entire tax year and is your child.

7. Calculate that you paid more than half of the student's total support during the tax year. Don't count the money the student had that she did not use for support.

8. Claim the student as your dependent if she meets all these requirements.

Tips & Warnings

• If you and someone else together provided more than half the student's total support and you provided at least 10 percent, one of you can claim the student's dependent exemption. File IRS Form 2120 to claim the exemption.
• Support includes food, education, medical, transportation, clothing, recreation and housing expenses. If the student lives with you, calculate her housing expense as the fair-market rental of the housing, not what you actually pay. Consider what she would pay for comparable housing if she had to rent it.
• If you are divorced or separated and the student's other parent paid more than half the student's support, you can still claim the dependent exemption for the student if you had physical custody for more than half the year.
• See a qualified tax professional if the situation with the student is complicated.
• A tuition scholarship is not considered support provided by the student or by you. It simply doesn't count.
• Money from student loans is support and is considered to be provided by the person who is responsible for repaying the loans.
• Night school, correspondence schools and on-the-job training are not considered schooling. But it is OK if part of the full-time attendance is at night.
• Do not include tax-exempt income in calculating a student's gross income. But you do have to count all the income received from rental property, even if the rental lost money.