Tax Tips

So Dependent On You: Who Can I Claim as a Dependents on my 2009 Tax Return?

Written by TurboTaxBlogTeam
Published Mar 29, 2010 - [Updated Jun 12, 2019]
5 min read

Over the past few years, questions around who can claim who and why has dramatically changed. There are more blended families in the U.S. The economy has taken a toll on our bottom lines resulting in three or four generations of families living together to save money. And yes, even non-family members moving in with each other to save a buck.

So how do those changes affect your tax situation? Can you claim your girlfriend on your taxes? What about your son who lives with your mother? And of course, pets. Can you claim Buster the beagle on your taxes? I sat down with Lee Ferris, one of our in-house tax experts and asked her those same questions.

The question and answer session aims to explain some of the more common dependent questions so you can get your biggest refund possible.

Question: Can someone claim their girlfriend or boyfriend on their taxes?

Answer: If your girlfriend has lived with you for all of 2009, her gross income is less than $3,650, and you’ve provided more than half of her total support (which is room board, food, car, insurance, etc.), you could claim her as a dependent on your tax return. To determine if you pay for more than half of her support, see IRS Pub 501 page 20. Each dependent you claim on your 2009 tax return reduces your taxable income by up to $3,650.

Question: What if we have a child, can I claim the baby also?

Answer: If the baby is your child, lived with you for more than half the year, and can’t support itself, you can claim the child as your dependent. And I know you are thinking, ‘Of course my baby can’t support itself.’ This was a-recent change by the IRS and a good example is if you have a child that is an actor. That child might be receiving a decent income and that counts as supporting itself.

But for all those parents with non-actor children out there, you can claim a child under the age of 19. If the child is a full-time student then you can claim them until the age of 24. If they are 25, working on their master’s degree and not earning any income you might be able to claim what the IRS calls a “qualified relative.” I would recommend visiting the IRS link to get more info on what defines the qualified relative and qualified child.

Question: My sister lives with me, and she receives Social Security Disability Benefits. If I charge her rent – which gets paid with social security – can I claim her as a dependent on my tax return?

Answer: If you are providing more than half of her total support (taking into consideration the rent she’s paying you) and she doesn’t make more than $3,650 a year, you can most likely claim her. Remember her social security isn’t counted as gross income. Look at the IRS worksheet in pub 501 to get more information on this.

Question: Can I claim any of my pets? What if they require special needs?

Answer: No. But I have been reading about a bill in Congress that is making the rounds that allows people to deduct pet medical expenses up to $3,500. The bill is proposed by Republican Thaddeus McCotter of Michigan. I am not sure what will happen with this but it is worth paying attention to.

Q: My parents just moved in with us so that we can take care of them. Can I claim them?

Answer: This is a common question right now because of the economy. If they are living with you, their only source of income is social security, and you are supporting them by more than 50 percent, you can claim them as a qualified relative. Remember, social security doesn’t count towards their gross income. Also, remember that since they are qualified relatives, they don’t have to live with you. You could be supporting them in their own home and still claim them as dependents.

Question: Can I still claim my spouse even though she received unemployment the majority of the year?

Answer: Even if your spouse is a stay-at-home mom, you can’t claim her as a dependent. This is why I encourage you to file a joint return. That way you get $3,650 for you and $3,650 for your spouse as a write-off – also known as an exemption. So 99 percent of the time it is more beneficial to file jointly because of that write-off amount and other deductions and credits.

However, one of my top questions this year is “Is unemployment taxable?” And the answer is, the first $2,400 of unemployment is NOT taxable. If both spouses receive unemployment benefits during 2009, each may exclude from taxable income the first $2,400 of benefits they received.

Question: I have been supporting my grandchild for the past six months and paid for everything. Do I claim her or does my daughter?

Answer: It depends. There are some questions you need to answer first. Will the father claim the child on his return? Is your daughter going to claim the child? If the child has lived with you for more than six months, both the father and your daughter are not going to claim the child , then yes, you can probably claim your granddaughter as a qualified child and get the various child credits on your tax return.

Question: Can I claim my niece if she is here on a student visa, going to college, and living with us? She makes no money here, pays no rent to us and we support all her expenses, except for tuition.

Answer: In this case, if she is under 24 and a full-time student and she’s not a qualifying child for anyone else, you can probably claim her as a dependent. But I like to urge people to please ensure that someone else is not already claiming the person in question as a dependent. Your niece can’t be claimed more than once. Also you can only claim the niece as a dependent if she’s a U.S citizen, U.S. resident, U.S. National, or resident of Canada or Mexico.

For questions we haven’t covered, please check out the IRS.gov page. The site has updated sample situations to help U.S. filers.

Check out this TurboTax video as well:

http://www.youtube.com/v/sbD8BfZzs8s?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0

227 responses to “So Dependent On You: Who Can I Claim as a Dependents on my 2009 Tax Return?”

Jimmie says:

September 30, 2013 at 2:14 pm

My Daughter lives out of state and is working 3-part time jobs and raising 3-toddlers on her own. She rarely makes enough to pay the bills & receives no assistance from the Father of her children. I send her apx $400.00 per month in order to make up the difference. Can/should I claim my Grandchildren? If so, would it hurt the small amount of food assistance she’s getting from the state?

Reply
- Tony Robbins says:
  
  February 14, 2014 at 7:01 pm
  
  the $400 will count as extra income for your daughter in regards to Social Services. Since the grandchildren are not living with you and what you provide is not the majority of what makes up her household, I dont think you can file for them.
  
  Reply
crazy says:

September 24, 2013 at 11:51 am

My stepdaughter came to us in August of this year and started school. Can I claim her on my taxes

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Kate says:

September 24, 2013 at 6:41 am

I have one child in HS and one away at college. After divorce i will still be their primary residence and will pay many of their expenses. My ex will be paying for their college, car, car insurance, and all medical expenses. Can he carry them on his health insurance if I claim Head of Household for taxes? I will be paying their expenses with the majority of the money coming from spousal support.

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Vicky says:

September 22, 2013 at 11:19 am

I have been together with my ex boyfriend for 5 years and we were already making plans to get married before we broke up recently. I like to admit that we did have our differences and we had a few fights often but we always got out of it. About 3 weeks ago, I literarily caught him flirting with a very close friend of mine, it’s totally unacceptable to me and that led to a separation. We broke up after that incident and I told him I never want to see him again. At this moment, it’s barely two weeks ago and I miss him already. I don’t want to lose my ex boyfriend to any gold digger. I want to know how to attract my boyfriend to me again, I need to know how to win his heart get my ex back into my life? I called him several times and he would not even pick up his phone. I don’t care
f I have to use psychological tricks or tips advice to win back his heart after the break up. Everything I’ve tried to do seems not to be working. I love my boyfriend, he loved me and I don’t know what to do or say. He was the one who cheated on me and I’m to forgive him. But he didn’t even try to reconcile. I know he loves me, but my best friend whom he flirted with is trying to steal my
boyfriend away from me,I need to reconnect and reunite our relationship, i try all my best until i mate a female great spell caster online Name Dr Kate (katelovespell@hotmail.com) i explain every thing that happened to me, she told me not to worry that she is gonna help me if only i can help my self and i told her yes. she promise to help me cast a return and love spell that last forever, after i summit my information, she cast the return and love spell and guarantee me after three days my ex-boyfriend is going to call me and asking for my forgiveness, i was so surprise the third day of it in the morning my ex-boyfriend call me on phone telling me he is come back that i should forgive him, thank you once again Dr kate (katelovespell@hotmail.com) she is the best you can reach her email address.

Reply
SSia says:

September 16, 2013 at 4:42 pm

My sister is paying child support for her two boys but they do not live with her. The father and boys are on welfare and receiving child support. Can she claim the boys on her income tax? Can the father let someone claim the boys if they do not support them?

Reply
- Tony Robbins says:
  
  February 14, 2014 at 7:02 pm
  
  Child support is not considered taxable income. She will not be able to claim them.
  
  Reply
AJ says:

September 4, 2013 at 9:24 pm

Hello. I am 17 years old and live with my single mother. I work a part time job and will make about $10000 at the end of the 2013 year; this job obviously takes out both Federal and State taxes, my question is, what do I claim myself as? My mom still buys my food, some clothes, and I live with her as she pays almost all of the house payments. So, what do I claim myself as? What if she claims me as dependent?

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sabrina says:

August 27, 2013 at 2:08 pm

My niece live with me and I have tooken care of her since birth, her mother and father do not file taxes. Can I claim her as a dependent since I provide for her?

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Teresa says:

July 25, 2013 at 3:01 am

My granddaughter lived with me from the end of Feb to mid Oct of last year. Received no money from her mother, who lived with me on and off also,she’s now 21. Her grandfather has ALREADY claimed her, saying he paid for her day care (that’s all). I SHOULD be able to claim my granddaughter (4 yrs old), right? The grandfather and I did not live together since Feb 24 th.

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Carla S. says:

May 20, 2013 at 7:32 pm

my daughter draws a check from her stepdad,if i get a job can i claim her on my insome tax?

Reply
Steven says:

March 30, 2013 at 11:02 pm

If we file a joint return will it hurt my wife’s disability benefits

Reply
- TurboTaxChristopherT says:
  
  April 2, 2013 at 7:41 am
  
  Hi Steven – You can file jointly without any worries about your spouse’s benefits. Most couples are better off filing jointly. The attached link explains why. Cheers… –Christopher http://turbotax.intuit.com/support/go/GEN83639
  
  Reply