Sometimes we’re so busy growing up that we forget they’re growing old.
Everyone knows that claiming a dependent on your income tax return can get you a significantly larger refund. For every dependent you claim on your taxes you can claim an extra personal exemption. That’s a large chunk of change you can deduct from your income, thus reducing your tax burden.
But who exactly can you claim? Are you eligible to claim your parents as dependents?
When it comes to taxes there are actually two different types of dependents: qualifying children and qualifying relatives.
Obviously, you can’t claim your parents as qualifying children. So the question becomes, do they meet the requirements for qualifying relatives?
Is your parent a qualifying relative for tax purposes?
In order to claim someone as a qualifying relative they must:
- Have lived with you all year as a member of your household, or be one of the following family members: child, parent, sibling, stepparent, stepchild, step-sibling, half sibling, grandparent, grandchild, child-in-law, parent-in-law, sibling-in-law, uncle, aunt, niece, or nephew
- Be a U.S. citizen or resident, or a resident of Canada or Mexico
- Be unmarried, or married but not filing a joint return
- Not be a qualifying child of you or someone else
- Have a gross income of less than $4,000
- Have more than half of their total support for the year provided by you
In plain English, this means that yes you can claim a parent as a dependent but they have to meet the above requirements.
Are Social Security Benefits included?
As a general rule, Social Security benefits are not included in gross income. For more information about Social Security and Disability benefits, check out our other article, “Claiming Parents as Dependents If They Receive Social Security Benefits“. Be sure to make sure they are tax-exempt, because this could determine your eligibility to claim them as a dependent.
When determining if you provided over 50% of a parent’s total support, be sure to consider
- lodging
- food expenses
- utilities
- repairs
- household expenses
- clothing
- education
- medical and dental expenses
- travel
- recreation expenses
If you support a parent who meets all of the requirements listed above be sure to claim them when you file online this season!
my dad passed away Aug 2013 and I still am claiming as head of household upon now. I am a single.
Q1:upon reading few blog and tax laws on deceased dependent, do i need to change my W2 status back to Single and report to my HR department?
Q2: will there be penalties due this reason for 2014 Tax? I didn’t do it purposely.
Q3: should i seek professional help to claim my tax in 2014?
Thanks
Hi JC,
I am sorry to hear about your father.
To answer your questions, it is in your best interest to update your W-4 information as soon as possible with your HR department. Since the W-4 form is only used to construct an estimate of the amount to withhold from your paychecks throughout the year, there will not be any legal “penalties” applied to you since you did not file your taxes yet. That being said, you may have an amount owed to the IRS after filing this year since the IRS was most likely not withholding as much as they would if you had updated your filing status earlier.
My Mother lives with my sister. She does not make more than $3900 a year. I support her financially with all her needs, Travel, clothes, food and other expense. We have a store that she collects rent for and she will be filing tax for that but the income of the store does not reach $3900 a year. Can I file her as my dependent? She is filing as single as my father passed away.
Hi Deeraj,
Typically, as long as you meet ALL requirements listed by the IRS for claiming a relative as a qualifying dependent, then you can. Below are the requirements that the IRS requires to be met in order to do so:
1. The relative cannot be your “Qualifying Child” and cannot be claimed by someone else.
2. The person must either have lived with you for the entire year as a member of the household (a person who is not actually related to you may meet the requirements in this way), or be related to you in one of the following ways: your child, stepchild, grandchild or other descendant of one of your children (or stepchildren or foster children), son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, parent, stepfather, stepmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, grandparent, and, if related by blood, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew.
3. The person must have made less than $3,950 in gross income during 2014.
4. You must have provided more than half of the individual’s total support during the year.
Hi,
My mother is in a nursing home. All but 38 dollars of her SSI goes to the nursing home. I, along with a sibling, contribute each month to maintain her home that is willed to us and pay additionally for her private room and other expenses. the total comes out to over $3000.00. Is any of this deductible?
Thanks
Hi Willie,
You can report nursing home expenses as medical expenses under certain circumstances:
1. If you, your spouse or your dependent is in a nursing home and the primary reason for being there is for medical care, the entire cost including meals and lodging is a deductible medical expense.
2. If the individual is in the home mainly for personal reasons, then only the cost of the actual medical care is a deductible medical expense, and the cost of the meals and lodging is not deductible.
Hi,
I was wondering if I can claim my father? He is fully disabled, We live together, my job is taking care of him, like his caregiver. He did receive his form from his disability, and I also received my W-2 forms, and school form. Or can he claim me?
Hi Deanna,
An individual must meet all of the following requirements in order to be considered your “Qualifying Relative”:
1. The relative cannot be your “Qualifying Child” and cannot be claimed by someone else.
2. The person must either have lived with you for the entire year as a member of the household (a person who is not actually related to you may meet the requirements in this way), or be related to you in one of the following ways: your child, stepchild, grandchild or other descendant of one of your children (or stepchildren or foster children), son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, parent, stepfather, stepmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, grandparent, and, if related by blood, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew.
3. The person must have made less than $3,950 in gross income during 2014.
4. You must have provided more than half of the individual’s total support during the year.
Hi,
My question is can I claim my father in my income tax, he is fully disabled. He also received a form.
Hi Deanna,
An individual must meet all of the following requirements in order to be considered your “Qualifying Relative”:
1. The relative cannot be your “Qualifying Child” and cannot be claimed by someone else.
2. The person must either have lived with you for the entire year as a member of the household (a person who is not actually related to you may meet the requirements in this way), or be related to you in one of the following ways: your child, stepchild, grandchild or other descendant of one of your children (or stepchildren or foster children), son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, parent, stepfather, stepmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, grandparent, and, if related by blood, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew.
3. The person must have made less than $3,950 in gross income during 2014.
4. You must have provided more than half of the individual’s total support during the year.