You've heard that claiming a child as a dependent can save you a lot on taxes each year—and yes, it is true. But what if you don’t have kids and instead have adults living under your roof? Can you claim an adult as a dependent?
Knowing the details of this tax question can help you navigate tax season and potentially earn tax credits or deductions. In this article, we'll explain what qualifies as a dependent for tax purposes and the rules for claiming an adult as a dependent.
What is a dependent for tax purposes?
The IRS considers a dependent a “qualifying child or relative who relies on you for financial support.” The keyword here is “qualifying”—the child or relative must meet certain criteria to be claimed for tax purposes (e.g. tax deductions or credits).
When can you claim an adult as a dependent?
You can claim an adult as a dependent, including adult children, if they qualify. For example, your spouse cannot be claimed as a dependent if you file taxes jointly.
Here are the general IRS rules for dependents:
- Must be a U.S. citizen, resident alien (i.e. a U.S. resident but not a citizen) or national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico
- The person can't be claimed as a dependent on more than one tax return, unless they qualify for an exception
- Your dependent cannot claim a dependent on their own tax return and spouses cannot be claimed as dependents (if filing jointly)
- Your dependent must be a qualifying child or relative, including a parent, siblings, and stepchildren, for example
What's a qualifying child?
A qualifying child is someone who fits all the criteria of relationship, age, residency, support, and joint return determined by the IRS. Here's the list:
- Relationship: Your dependent must be your child, stepchild, eligible foster child, adopted child, or the child of one of these (i.e. your grandchild). The child also qualifies as a dependent if they're your sibling, half sibling, stepbrother or stepsister.
- Age: The dependent must be under the age 19 or 24, if they're a full-time student. If they're permanently disabled, there's no age limit.
- Residency and support: Your dependent must live with you for more than half of the year and get more than half of their financial support from you. There are exceptions for the residency rule, such as temporary absence for education, vacation, or military service.
- Joint return: Your child must be unmarried. If married, they should not file jointly with their spouse, unless it's exclusively to claim a refund of taxes paid or withheld.
If your child does not meet all the criteria on this list, or fall under the rare exceptions for some of the rules, they can’t be claimed as your dependent. The IRS has a page dedicated to a deep dive into the rules for a qualifying child, point by point, if you have more questions.
Note: If you’re divorced and have joint custody of the child, typically the parent with whom the child lives for more than half of the year is able to claim them as a dependent—unless there's any sort of legal agreement that determines otherwise. Check the IRS publication for Divorced or Separated Individuals, page 8, for more information.
What's a qualifying adult relative?
A qualifying relative is any person that meets all the general rules for dependents plus the relationship or member of the household, gross income, and support criteria determined by the IRS. Here's the list:
- Member of the household: The relative must live with you as a member of your household during the whole year.
- Relationship: If the relative doesn't live with you, they must be related to you in one of the ways accepted by the IRS. The list includes parents, grandparents or direct ancestors (such as your great grandparents), stepparents, siblings, step siblings, half siblings, your nieces and nephews (including the children of your half siblings), a brother or sister of your parents, and your in-laws. Note: Foster parents aren't included and cousins are only contemplated if they live with you during the whole year.
- Gross income and support: The gross income of the relative must be under $4,700 and they must get more than half of their total financial support from you during the calendar year.
All these rules are mandatory. If your relative does not meet even one aspect of the qualifying criteria, you can't claim them as your adult dependent. The IRS site also has a page dedicated to explain the qualifying relative rules in detail.
Note: If the adult relative in question is, for example, an elder being supported by multiple children (or other family members) including you, the person who provides over 50% of their support is typically the one able to claim them as a dependent.
Why claim someone as a dependent?
By claiming dependents you can benefit from tax breaks and tax credits, for example, which can save you money when paying taxes.
As a refresher on tax terms, a tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar amount you claim on your tax return to reduce the income taxes you owe, which can potentially increase your return. On the other hand, a tax deduction is an amount subtracted from your income when filing so you don't pay taxes over it.
How to claim a dependent on your taxes
Claiming a dependent is simple. There's a section dedicated to dependents on the first page of the 1040 individual tax return form and you must fill in your dependent's information, including name and last name, social security number, and relationship with you.
Since you must prove your dependent receives more than half of their financial support from you, it's wise to save receipts of expenses you cover for them or pay on their behalf. These expenses must count as support under IRS rules, which includes medical and dental care, transportation, and education.
Bottom line
Tax season can be complicated and fraught. There are multiple details to think about and if you want to claim an adult dependent, there are a handful of criteria they must meet to qualify as such, including age, residency status, and income. Thankfully, the IRS foresees that all those requirements and rules can be hard for the taxpayer to understand. For this reason, they provide an interactive tax tutorial that checks your understanding with a quick test.
Consider doing the test and, if you still have questions, check our cheat sheet with 10 things you must know going into tax season.
FAQs
Can you claim an adult as a dependent on tax return?
Yes, you can claim an adult as a dependent as long as they're a qualifying child or qualifying relative. The IRS qualification criteria includes, age, residency, financial support, and relationship with you.
Can I claim my child as a dependent if they are over 18?
Yes. According to IRS guidelines, you can claim your child as a dependent if they're under 19, or under 24 years old if they study full-time. If your child is permanently disabled, there's no age limit, but keep in mind that in either case there are other criteria to be met.
Who can I claim as a dependent?
Qualifying children (which includes a child, stepchild, foster child, or grandchild) and qualifying relatives (including parents, grandparents, stepparents, or siblings.) Check the full guide for claiming dependents on the IRS website by clicking here.
When should I stop claiming my child as a dependent?
Once your child stops meeting the age, residency, or support criteria to be claimed as your dependent, you should stop doing so. For instance, if they don't live with you for more than half of the year and don't get more than half of their support from you, they don't qualify anymore.
Can I claim my girlfriend as a dependent?
Technically yes, but it can be tricky since there are very specific criteria to be met. The IRS allows taxpayers to claim a qualifying adult as a dependent if said relative meets all the general rules for dependents, lives with you as a member of your household for the whole year, has a gross income under $4,700, and gets more than half of their financial support from you. Not meeting any of these criteria automatically disqualifies the person.
How much do you get for a dependent over 18?
If your dependent is over 18, you may qualify for a tax credit that's called Credit for Other Dependents, which is available for taxpayers whose dependents don't qualify for the Child Tax Credit. The maximum amount is $500 for each dependent that meets the eligibility criteria, which is available on the IRS site.