What are the laws on who can legally declare someone a dependent?

[Elisabet1]

My daughter only turned 18 half way through the year. We paid 100% of her bills for all but the last two weeks of the year. We are still paying for her health insurance and such. We paid for her college this fall and only got a partial refund.

 

Thing is, she wants financial aid for next year and says she is going to do everything without us. So her plan to have someone else...like a birth relative who has little to no income, claim her on their taxes. None of them even had contact with her until some time this past fall. We paid her bills all year, as well as the money for college. She is not an inexpensive person. Even her music lessons alone were $80 an hour and a long drive away. 

 

I tried to call the IRS hotline and got some lady who never transferred me to anyone. She cut me off and said my daughter can pick whoever she wants to have declare her. And that was it. I tried to explain that she was underaged half the year and we paid all her bills and she cut me off again and repeated herself. My daughter has the right to pick who she wants to have declare her.

 

Then, after that, my daughter plans to use the lower income of whoever to file her FAFSA and get a lot of financial aid. Since she will have the taxes done with someone else, she will have no trouble at all with the FAFSA tax verification. 

 

Can she do this? I was working on my taxes last night and when I put in my children as deductions, it was asking stuff like did she live with us for 6 months and did anyone else help us pay the bills and so on. If someone else took her as a deduction, they cannot in any way say they paid anything. However, my birth relatives are not honest people and pretty much have a checkered past when it comes to their finances and criminal/civil court issues (stuff like hot checks, shoplifting, failure to pay taxes, repossessions). They would not be beyond lying about this. If they did, would we have any legal recourse?

 

I am still just putting her down as a deduction and getting my taxes in ASAP. I know if I file her on my taxes and got mine in first, she would have to file a complaint and go through a long process to overturn it. However, I am getting extremely frustrated that this is the end of January and I have received no tax documents at all. I have received nothing. No bank documents, nothing from work, nothing. So all I can do is sit here every day, hounding the mail box and checking online. Nothing. All I need is something...a w-2, anything. I can file and then amend later to add any other documents I get after the fact.

[SparklyUnicorn]

In order to be independent per the FAFSA you need to be over a certain age, married, a ward of the state, or your parents are declared to have credit too lousy to be given any sort of loan.

 

I don't know of any other way.  I don't see how some random person can claim someone on their taxes. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

And as far as I know it's not so straightforward in terms of claiming them if they are not a full time college student.  You can still claim her no problem at this point.  It's up to 19 and she was a college student. 

 

 

[Elisabet1]

Can she legally object to us claiming her as a dependent? It would seem to me since we did pay her bills and she was underaged for half the year, she would have to let us claim her and could not legally object. I would think we would have a legal right here.

[Lori D.]

Gently, and meant with respect and wishing you well:

 

None of us would want to steer you wrong, and because these are complex issues, your best bet would be to:

- speak with a professional tax accountant about claiming a dependent on income tax returns

- speak directly to the FAFSA hotline about your FAFSA questions = 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243)

- work with a caring, professional counselor to address the emotional/relational family issues with DD

- work with a caring, professional physician to help DD address her mental health/med needs

 

My uneducated *guess* based on the info from the FAQ at the Federal Student Aid website, is that regardless of where DD lives, until she is age 25 or married, her legal parents' (your) financial information must be provided on the FAFSA form each year, which will determine the EFC number and how much need-based aid DD will be eligible for. This is because you and your DH are her legal (either biological or adoptive) parents -- a quote from the FAQ linked above:

 

"Who is my parent according to the FAFSA?

If you need to report parent information, here are some guidelines to help you: If your legal parents (your biological and/or adoptive parents, or parents as determined by the state—e.g., a parent listed on your birth certificate) are married to each other, answer the questions about both of them, regardless of whether your parents are of the same or opposite sex.

 

What if I live with someone other than my parents?

It doesn’t matter if you don’t live with your parent or parents; you still must report information about them. The following people are not your parents unless they have legally adopted you: grandparents, foster parents, legal guardians, older brothers or sisters, uncles or aunts, and widowed stepparents."

 

 

Sympathy, encouragement, and wishing you the VERY best in finding the best assistance for resolving all the different and complex components of your family's circumstances. Warmest regards, Lori D.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Can she legally object to us claiming her as a dependent? It would seem to me since we did pay her bills and she was underaged for half the year, she would have to let us claim her and could not legally object. I would think we would have a legal right here.

 

If she claims herself on a tax return, you could not legally claim her as well.  Otherwise, I don't see anything that she could do or say that would change things if she is still living with you.

[LizzyBee]

Based on the circumstances you described, you can claim her as a dependent. Even if you don't claim her, she cannot claim herself (because she is eligible to be claimed by you), and she cannot have a random relative claim her. If someone else beats you to the punch and your e-filed return gets rejected, print it out and mail it in. If/when you receive a notice from the IRS because of two people claiming her, write a letter explaining the circumstances and send it to the address on the notice. If you choose to call instead, make sure you get the ID number and name of the agent you speak with. The problem with calling is that 10 agents will give you 8 different answers (this is pretty well established by studies). So putting everything in writing and keeping copies of what you send is the better option, imo. 

 

If she leaves your home to go to college full time, your home is still her tax home, so she is considered to live with you for tax purposes while she is away. As long as she is a full time student for part of the month for 5 consecutive months (in other words, one semester), and under 24 years old, and you provide more than half of her support, you can claim her as a dependent regardless of her income level.

 

For more information, you can check out www.irs.gov.

http://www.irs.gov/publications/p17/ch03.html

 

[LucyStoner]

For 2014, she is your dependent for tax purposes.

 

For 2015, if she doesn't live with you and is not in school recieving 1/2 of her support from you she is not your dependent.

 

If you claim her for 2014 and someone else also claims her for 2014 (herself or a relative), the IRS will ask each filer for verification. Based on what you said, they would find that she was your dependent for 2014. The person who claims her fraudulently would face a greatly delayed refund. In fact if they try to claim the EITC for her, they could be disallowed from taking the EITC in future tax years for children they are actually entitled to take the EITC for. In other words, they probably don't want to do this. It is a bad idea. A very bad idea.

 

For the FAFSA, she has to list her parents information even if was claimed by someone else. She can't list these other people. Under certain circumstances she could list herself as an independent student even though she's not 24 but it sounds that she does not qualify for any of those circumstances.

[LucyStoner]

Wasn't she only at college for a week or something in 2014? Your basis for claiming her is that she was under 19, she lived with you for most of the year, she's your daughter and she didn't provide more than 1/2 her own support. She is not a college student for tax purposes for 2014.

[Elisabet1]

Wasn't she only at college for a week or something in 2014? Your basis for claiming her is that she was under 19, she lived with you for most of the year, she's your daughter and she didn't provide more than 1/2 her own support. She is not a college student for tax purposes for 2014.

She was only at college for two or three days. I am unsure how much officially. We did pay but got a large portion refunded, not all. She stayed at the dorm for 2 nights technically,  but I think she was technically enrolled for a week or so. She lived here the entire year until the last two weeks. 

[LucyStoner]

She was only at college for two or three days. I am unsure how much officially. We did pay but got a large portion refunded, not all. She stayed at the dorm for 2 nights technically, but I think she was technically enrolled for a week or so. She lived here the entire year until the last two weeks.

Yup, not a student. You can't claim an educational credit for the money you paid for her withdrawal.

[merry gardens]

My daughter only turned 18 half way through the year. We paid 100% of her bills for all but the last two weeks of the year. We are still paying for her health insurance and such. We paid for her college this fall and only got a partial refund.

 

Thing is, she wants financial aid for next year and says she is going to do everything without us. So her plan to have someone else...like a birth relative who has little to no income, claim her on their taxes. ...

 

I'm not sure of the answer from a tax perspective, but you might want to ask someone at a college financial aid department about if she'd qualify for aid differently if she was declared someone else's dependent on taxes.  From my understanding, parents' income is considered when evaluating if a student qualifies for financial help, even if the parents provides no financial support to the student. (There are a few exceptions, such as member of the military or married students.)

[Plateau Mama]

It doesn't matter who claims her on her taxes, if she is under 24 and not married most of the time they have to use their parents financial information. There are other exemptions, but it doesn't sound like your daughter falls under any of them.

 

I just went to a college finance talk and she said 99% of the time if you are under 24 you must use your parents info.

[Elisabet1]

Yup, not a student. You can't claim an educational credit for the money you paid for her withdrawal.

I don't think that part mattered because I have another child in college and I think you can only claim a limit each year anyway. We maxed out last year with older child. I assume you cannot double up when you have two there.

[Lanny]

OT but your DD sounds like she is very hostile to you.. If I was in your shoes, I would certainly feel entitled to claim her.  The problem is that if you claim her, and someone else does too, the I.R.S. computers will flag that, because 2 returns are claiming someone with the same Social Security number. It is not who files first, it is who is legally entitled.

[jenn-]

OT but your DD sounds like she is very hostile to you.. If I was in your shoes, I would certainly feel entitled to claim her.  The problem is that if you claim her, and someone else does too, the I.R.S. computers will flag that, because 2 returns are claiming someone with the same Social Security number. It is not who files first, it is who is legally entitled.

 

The IRS will reject whoever files second for e-filing.  You will more then likely have to file by paper and provide evidence to support your claim.  If your child lived with you and you payed for over half their expenses, you can claim them as your dependent no ifs ands or butts about it.  If someone else claims your DD, it will be a fraudulent return and they will go after them as such.

[LucyStoner]

I don't think that part mattered because I have another child in college and I think you can only claim a limit each year anyway. We maxed out last year with older child. I assume you cannot double up when you have two there.

The American Opportunity Credit is a per student maximum. The Lifetime Learning Credit is a per family per year maximum.

[Elisabet1]

The American Opportunity Credit is a per student maximum. The Lifetime Learning Credit is a per family per year maximum.

What is the difference between these? Because I just enter the info on turbo tax and it does it for me. 

[Wildcat]

Interestingly, something slightly similar came up on Reddit the other day in that there was a dispute over who could claim a 19 year old college student. Someone identifying as an IRS employee explained what would happen if two people claimed the came person (i.e. the same SS number being used twice). Here is what he/she said: (and the link if you want to read some of the comments http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/2tfcvp/my_mother_is_trying_to_illegally_claim_me_on_her/)

 

"The issue may come up when trying to e-File if she already claimed you for the year. It will not allow you to file electronically and you will have to print your return, sign it and mail it in. This will cause a longer processing time for your return and refund, unfortunately.

 

If this is the case, you will also receive a notice about the fact that your social security number was claimed as a dependent on more than one tax return. At this point (again, assuming that you are legally able to claim your own exemption) you do nothing. Your mother will receive the same notice and will have to amend her return to remove the exemption."

 

Basically, whoever files first with a SS# will have an easier time of it but you both will have to defend & prove who has the right to the exemption.

 

Remember the above quote (and my opinion) are free advice on the internet from strangers. I would do some more research with the IRS website LizzyBee linked,  print supporting information, dig up every shred of proof that you paid for your dd's care (and keep it in your files), and go ahead and claim her.

 

As for the FAFSA, she is going to have a heck of a time of it if she doesn't use your info, so I wouldn't worry about that. It isn't on you if she tries to cheat the system. From what I have read over the years, she won't get a thing without your info.

 

 

 

 

[LucyStoner]

What is the difference between these? Because I just enter the info on turbo tax and it does it for me.

The AOC is probably what you have been claiming for your son as it is a more advantageous credit and he's in his first four years of higher education. It has a per student rather than per family cap. This means that families with closely spaced children or multiple students at the same time are not deprived of the credit. https://www.taxslayer.com/support/923/What-are-the-differences-between-the-American-Opportunity-Credit-and-the-Lifetime-Learning-Credit?language=1

[JFSinIL]

The FAFSA will be looking at YOUR income whether you claim her as a dependent or not, for many years yet, unless she marries.  The FAFSA folks are not idiots.  She can't outwit them. 

 

My oldest dd's boyfriend was in a pickle, as his guardian/grandma refused to provide any info for the FAFSA, and without it he could not get the financial aid that would help pay for community college. 

[LucyStoner]

The FAFSA will be looking at YOUR income whether you claim her as a dependent or not, for many years yet, unless she marries. The FAFSA folks are not idiots. She can't outwit them.

 

My oldest dd's boyfriend was in a pickle, as his guardian/grandma refused to provide any info for the FAFSA, and without it he could not get the financial aid that would help pay for community college.

Or joins the military or has a child of her own or convinces the financial aid officer at her school that she qualifies for a financial aid override.

 

Re: your DDs boyfriend, I think that if the law requires an adult student to list their guardians information than the law should require the guardian to make it available. It puts so many kids between a rock and a hard place and not just until 21 but 24. 6 years. Thankfully there are some changes now that would help him.

[Anne in CA]

Obama has changed the laws on FAFSA. The birth relatives can probably be the ones to do her FAFSA if they are the LAST people who gave her help, it might not matter how much help. My step dd was able to use her mother instead of us to do her FAFSA and get lots of financial aide she never could have gotten with our tax returns because it no longer matters who helped the most, it matters who helped the last. At least that is my understanding.

[Tsuga]

Her best bet to file a FAFSA without you is to get married. At some point she may figure that out. If her boyfriend co-signs on loans he could be in deep... Problems. Please let his parents know what is going on if you haven't already.

[LucyStoner]

Obama has changed the laws on FAFSA. The birth relatives can probably be the ones to do her FAFSA if they are the LAST people who gave her help, it might not matter how much help. My step dd was able to use her mother instead of us to do her FAFSA and get lots of financial aide she never could have gotten with our tax returns because it no longer matters who helped the most, it matters who helped the last. At least that is my understanding.

The changes make it so that students living with a guardian rather than a parent (such as a grandparent or aunt) are considered independent students but you still, I believe need to get an override from the school's fin aid office. The changes do not make it so that the non-parent "guardian" tax information is used on the FAFSA.

[J-rap]

Based on what you're saying, you can claim your daughter as a dependent whether she is a college student or not.  Up til age 25, your income has to be included in her total when applying for FAFSA (unless she gets married).  I believe she would need to do something very official probably involving an attorney to get out of being legally your daughter anymore, and I imagine that would take money.  I'm sorry you're going through this and that your relationship with her right now is not good.

 

A couple years ago, we were able to declare our daughter who was 23 and married a dependent!  She was living out of the country going to school, but had taken a semester off to be home with us during my husband's illness, and had also lived at home in the summer.  Even when she lived out of the country while going to school, we still paid for her tuition and health insurance, and her husband's earnings were small in that country.  (If we still paid for half of her expenses and she lived at home for a certain number of months/year, we could still claim her, which we did.  :)

 

Best wishes to you, and hopefully more peaceful, smoother days lie ahead!

 

 

[Elisabet1]

Her best bet to file a FAFSA without you is to get married. At some point she may figure that out. If her boyfriend co-signs on loans he could be in deep... Problems. Please let his parents know what is going on if you haven't already.

I let his parents know what was going on at Christmas. They are home schoolers too. Everything came out and to head. She showed what she was doing to them. My birthparents flipped out on the dad when he tried to speak to her. He saw them for what they were. She damaged the computer she had been using before she left, but we were able to look at the history. She had been cheating on the boyfriend. Apparently, he already found out from her cell phone when she asked him to use the GPS, back in Nov/Oct. There was a whole web of lies on the computer and cell phone. A lot of the stuff has shocked me so much that I am still processing. But, about the boyfriend, they are broken up now. He is such a nice guy and has been so hurt by everything, I feel awful for him. 

 

Anyway, last night, my taxes did get accepted, so that is a past issue, hopefully.  If she lies on the FAFSA, she will not be able to do any sort of verification. I won't sign it. She does not have my pin. She has tried to make up lies about me and slander me in order to get out of trouble she has gotten in to, but so far, it has not worked for her. I am in complete shock that things took this turn. But the relationship is not recoverable (a lot has happened that I have not even posted). I wish it were, but I do not see how. I am afraid to even post the rest of the details because I do not want to be judged for it anymore.

[maize]

Obama has changed the laws on FAFSA. The birth relatives can probably be the ones to do her FAFSA if they are the LAST people who gave her help, it might not matter how much help. My step dd was able to use her mother instead of us to do her FAFSA and get lots of financial aide she never could have gotten with our tax returns because it no longer matters who helped the most, it matters who helped the last. At least that is my understanding.

Your step dd's mother is one of her parents. In this case I believe the "birth family" being referenced are actually the mother's birth family, so the girl's grandparents, aunt, etc.. They will not count as parents for FAFSA purposes.

[Elisabet1]

My understanding is that there are no changes that allow the adult child to simply chose who they will declare the income of. If there were, it would be easy for even the richest of families to declare a different income for their child and get financial aid. Heck, they could use their cleaning person or the pool guy. If we used the nice lady who used to clean our house, she could get more in aid. And the cleaning lady we had would be more of family than my birth parents. The cleaning lady has been in our home, my birth parents have not. Birth parents do not have any legal rights to kids. They had no legal rights to me. They are not even legally grandparents. You still legally have to declare your own parents, not just random person with a lower income.

 

http://www.finaid.org/otheraid/parentsrefuse.phtml

 

 

 

[Tsuga]

I'm so sorry that happened to her boyfriend particularly as he's so young, but I am glad he is not around to be a victim to potential student loan fraud or anything. Hugs to you all. I hope she can find good treatment soon.