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June 6, 2019
Question

Full time college student

  • June 6, 2019
  • 1 reply
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my 20 year old daughter is a full time student.  I was told I could claim her as a dependent.  Is this correct?

1 reply

Employee
June 6, 2019

Yes. 

You can claim your 20 year old daughter as a dependent if all of the following requirements are met:

  • She is between the ages of 19 and 24,
  • She was a full time student for 2016
    • To be a student, they must be, during some part of each of any 5 calendar months of the year:
      • A full-time student at a school that has a regular teaching staff, course of study, and a regularly enrolled student body at the school, or
      • A student taking a full-time, on-farm training course given by a school described in (1), or by a state, county, or local government agency.
    • The 5 calendar months don't have to be consecutive.

  • She did not provide more than half of her own support.
    • This test is different from the support test to be a qualifying relative, which is described later. However, to see what is or isn't support, see Support Test (To Be a Qualifying Relative) , later. If you aren't sure whether a child provided more than half of his or her own support, you may find Worksheet 2 helpful.
  • She did not file a joint tax return.
    • An exception to the joint return test applies if your child and his or her spouse file a joint return only to claim a refund of income tax withheld or estimated tax paid.