Kids are great! But they can be taxing…in more ways than one.
Growing up, my parents would always give me an increase on my allowance around April. They would say it was to teach me how to budget my money. Not to sell out my parents or anything but now I know that they were able to give me a little extra once a year because they were getting more back from the IRS after filing and claiming me as a dependent.
Let’s just say, those little bonuses stopped once I began filing my own taxes.
Is there a limit to how many dependents I can claim on my tax return?
No, there is no maximum amount of dependents you’re allowed to claim on your tax return. You can claim all dependents who are qualified child dependents according to IRS rules. Consider it a token of appreciation for supporting the ever-increasing costs of diapers, astronomical college tuition fees and for simply putting food on the table each night.
What qualifies a child as my dependent?
You may see this question to have a simple answer if you are married parents filing a joint return. However, for single parents, married parents who file separately or other relatives, the answer is not as clear.
A qualifying child dependent has slightly different requirements than a qualifying relative dependent does. In order to be considered a qualifying child dependent, they must meet all of the following requirements:
- The child must be a U.S. citizen, national, resident or a resident of Mexico or Canada.
- The child cannot be claimed by someone else or themselves if they are also taking the personal exemption.
- If the child is filing a tax return, they cannot be claiming a dependent.
- The child cannot be filing a joint tax return.
- The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, brother, sister, eligible foster child, half sibling, stepsibling, or adopted child. He/she can also qualify if they are an offspring of any of the above.
- The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year.
- The child must be under 19 years old. If the child is a full-time student, they must be under 24 years old. There is no age limit if the child is totally and permanently disabled.
- You must have provided more than half of the child’s annual financial support.
How much is each dependent child worth on my tax return?
Each child claimed as a dependent reduces your taxable income by $4,000. Contrary to popular belief, this does not mean that $4,000 will be added to your refund or directly deducted from your tax bill. It means that the income amount that you are being taxed on is reduced which ultimately reduces your tax bill (or increases your refund amount).
Although claiming a dependent or two on your tax return opens the door to qualifying for the Child Tax Credit, it does not guarantee it.
Can I claim the Child Tax Credit?
Claiming a dependent on your tax return reduces your taxable income while claiming the child tax credit reduces your tax due amount directly. A tax credit reduces your tax bill dollar-for-dollar and each child is worth up to $1,000. To read more about qualifying for the credit, check out our article all about it HERE!
When you create an account with Rapidtax, our application will automatically let you know if you qualify for the Child Tax Credit after entering in your income and dependent information.
Happy filing!
I have 3 children and another one on the way but she won’t be born till January, would I be able to claim her or what till next year?
You will not be able to claim a child that has yet to be born. There is also a minimum amount of months that your child must live with you for the year to be considered a qualified dependent. You will need to wait until next year, and as a guideline, you can view the IRS’s publication on who they consider as a qualified dependent.
Ok I have one kid and i am head of house hold, and i have daycare, but i have two jobs 1. making 46000 the other making about 15000 how should i file please help me if you can
Please start by creating an account at http://www.rapidtax.com. Once you have reported your information, we will prepare your return for you. You also have the option to contact us on 1-877-289-7580 (Mon-Fri between 10:00 am – 5:00 pm) for additional assistance.
My wife and I recently married this year. She makes about 20k less than I do and We have 3 kids together previously we would switch every two years claiming the kids BUT this year we are married and I was wondering if we would get more back filing married but filing separate and I claim 1 and she claim the other two or if we file married filing jointly and she claim all. Is it possible to file married filing jointly and I claim one and she claim the other two?
Hello Lyric,
You can make an account with our website and it will calculate the tax refund or liability when you choose different filing status.’ Start for free. You may opt to use our tax calculator to also get an estimated refund or tax liability. The Married filing Jointly status gives you both a higher standard deduction than Married filing Separately, however, you will have shared tax responsibilities.
If you choose to file Married filing Separately, only then will you and your wife choose to claim your three children separately. Keep in mind that your tax rate is higher and you may not be able to claim certain credits based off of one income compared to two.
hi i am a student and have three kids and a spouse but by kids and spouse dont have SSN. I am applying for their social and need to submit extension for tax credits. i dont know how to answer these questions on extension for
4: Estimate of total tax liability for 2016 . . $
5 Total 2016 payments . . . . . .
6 Balance due. Subtract line 5 from line 4
(see instructions) . . . . . . .
7 Amount you’re paying
You must provide an “estimate of your total tax liability for 2016”. If you think you will owe the IRS in 2016, you need to provide an estimate of this amount. Your “total 2016 payments” is the total amount of estimated payments you may have paid the IRS in 2016. The “Balance due” is the difference of your estimated total tax and total payments. “Amount you are paying” is any payment that you will be including with your Application for Extension form 4868.
I’m a sigle mom and head of household I have 3 children, If I drop two can i claim all 3 at the end of the yr?
I am the only one taking care of them and my tax records have always remained the same with the same dependents.
Will I owe or get into trouble?
Hello Laney,
That will not be an issue as long as your two children will not be claimed as dependents that tax year, either by themselves or by others. To be able to claim your dependents, they must live with you for over 12 months and you must provide more than half of their financial support. This link from the IRS is a way to guide you in how to find out on who you can claim for dependents.