18 yr old has 10800 in Earned Income. Should the father who supported him all year claim him or allow the child to claim himself and delete child from return?

[trj3charm]

The father is getting the $500 Other Dependent tax credit. Do I need to delete the child from the return or can I leave him since there is no earned income credit on the fathers return?

[ConnieQ · Accepted solution]

One person is a dependent of another person or not. It is not a choice. Your first step is to determine if the 18 year old son is a dependent of the father. There are 5 dependency tests: 1) Relationship 2) Age 3) Residency 4) Support and 5) Joint Return. All 5 tests must be met to claim someone as a dependent. See IRS Publication 501 for an in-depth discussion on dependents and exceptions to the various tests.

For example: Let's say the son provided $10,800 of his own support and the father provided $11,000 of the son's support. The son met all the other dependency tests. The son is a dependent of the father. But, if the son provide $10,800 of his own support and the father provided $10,000 of the son's support. Even if the son meets all the other dependency tests, he is not a dependent of the father and cannot be claimed on his return.

[George4Tacks]

@ConnieQ Thank you for entering into the fray. We need more users like you willing to clearly share answers. I hope to see you around often.

[ConnieQ]

You're welcome. I'm glad I could help.

[abctax55]

@ConnieQ -  What George said...  
Thanks for a great answer, and welcome to the zoo.