Can You Claim a 24-Year-Old Child on Your Taxes?

Determining whether you can claim your 24-year-old child as a dependent hinges on a specific set of rules from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). These regulations are designed to verify that the individual is financially reliant on you. Your eligibility for this tax benefit depends on whether your child’s circumstances meet the criteria for either a “Qualifying Child” or a “Qualifying Relative.”

The Qualifying Child Rules

The first pathway to claiming a dependent is by meeting the “Qualifying Child” tests. These are a series of five conditions that must all be satisfied. While these rules can extend to adult children in specific situations, all five components must be met for taxpayers with a 24-year-old.

The relationship test requires the individual to be your son, daughter, stepchild, or an eligible foster child. This also includes your brother, sister, half-sibling, step-sibling, or a descendant of any of these individuals, such as a grandchild, niece, or nephew.

The age test is a significant hurdle when your child is 24. To meet this test, your child must be younger than 19 at the end of the tax year or under 24 and a “full-time student” for at least part of five calendar months during the year. A full-time student is an individual enrolled for the number of hours or courses the school considers to be full-time attendance. An exception exists for a child of any age who is “permanently and totally disabled.”

The residency test requires that the child must have lived with you for more than half of the year. The IRS provides exceptions for temporary absences, such as time away for education, illness, or military service. A college student who lives on campus is considered to be on a temporary absence and is treated as living at home for residency purposes.

The support test for a qualifying child stipulates that the child cannot have provided more than half of their own financial support during the year. Support includes all funds used for the child’s living expenses, such as food, lodging, clothing, education, and medical care. You must compare the amount the child contributed to their own support with the total amount of support they received from all sources.

The joint return test states that the child cannot file a joint tax return with a spouse for the tax year. An exception exists if the child and their spouse file a joint return only to claim a refund of income tax withheld or estimated taxes paid, and neither would have a tax liability if they filed separate returns.

The Qualifying Relative Rules

If your 24-year-old does not meet the age test to be a qualifying child because they are not a full-time student, you may still claim them as a dependent under the “Qualifying Relative” rules. This alternative path has a different set of four tests.

The first test is that the person cannot be your qualifying child, nor can they be the qualifying child of any other taxpayer. This rule ensures that an individual is not claimed under more than one dependency category.

A key part of these rules is the gross income test. To be claimed as a qualifying relative, your child’s gross income for the tax year must be less than an amount set by the IRS, which is $5,050 for the 2024 tax year. Gross income includes all income the person receives that is not tax-exempt, such as wages, unemployment compensation, and certain taxable scholarship funds.

The support test for a qualifying relative is stricter than the one for a qualifying child. You must provide more than half of the person’s total support for the calendar year. To determine this, you calculate the total cost of the person’s support for the year from all sources and then compare that total to the amount you personally provided.

The final test is the relationship or member of household test. The person must either live with you for the entire year as a member of your household or be related to you. Since you are attempting to claim your child, the relationship part of this test is automatically met, and they do not need to have lived with you for the entire year.

Associated Tax Credits and Deductions

Claiming your 24-year-old as a dependent unlocks several tax benefits that can reduce your overall tax liability.

Because a 24-year-old is over the age of 17, they are not eligible for the Child Tax Credit. However, if you claim them as a dependent, you may be able to claim the Credit for Other Dependents. This is a nonrefundable tax credit worth up to $500 per qualifying dependent and is available for dependents who meet either the qualifying child or qualifying relative tests.

Claiming a dependent can also enable you to use a more advantageous filing status. If you are unmarried and pay for more than half the costs of keeping up a home for yourself and your dependent child, you may qualify to file as Head of Household. This filing status results in a lower tax bill than filing as Single because it offers a larger standard deduction and more favorable tax brackets.

If your 24-year-old is a student and you claim them as a dependent, you may be eligible to claim education-related tax benefits for tuition and fees. These include the American Opportunity Tax Credit, worth up to $2,500 per eligible student, and the Lifetime Learning Credit, worth up to $2,000 per return. For the 2024 tax year, the benefit is phased out for single filers with a modified adjusted gross income between $80,000 and $90,000, and for joint filers with an income between $160,000 and $180,000. If you claim your child as a dependent, only you can claim these credits for the educational expenses you paid.

Other potential tax benefits include the ability to deduct student loan interest you paid on a loan taken out for your dependent child. You may also be able to use funds from an employer-provided dependent care flexible spending account to pay for care for a child who is physically or mentally incapable of self-care.

How to Claim a Dependent on Your Tax Return

Once you have determined that your 24-year-old meets the tests to be your dependent, the process of claiming them on your tax return involves providing accurate information on your Form 1040.

When you fill out your Form 1040, you will see a section labeled “Dependents.” In this section, you must enter the dependent’s full name, Social Security number (SSN), and their relationship to you. You will also need to check a box indicating the dependent qualifies for the Credit for Other Dependents.

An incorrect or missing SSN is a common reason for the IRS to reject a dependency claim. It is also important to ensure the name you enter on the tax return matches the name associated with that SSN in the Social Security Administration’s records.

A coordination step is needed if your child also files their own tax return. If you claim your child as a dependent, they must check a box on their own Form 1040 that says, “Someone can claim you as a dependent.” Failure to do this will likely cause the IRS e-filing system to reject your return, as it will appear that two different taxpayers are trying to claim the same personal exemption.