Can You Claim a Parent as a Dependent?

Claiming a parent as a dependent on your tax return can offer tax advantages. This requires meeting specific Internal Revenue Service (IRS) criteria, which ensure the individual relies on your support.

Eligibility Criteria for Claiming a Parent

To claim a parent as a qualifying relative dependent, several specific tests must be satisfied. The parent cannot be a qualifying child of the taxpayer or any other individual.

The gross income test requires the parent’s gross income to be less than $5,050. Certain types of income, such as Social Security benefits, may be excluded from this calculation.

The support test requires you to provide more than half of your parent’s total support for the year.

The parent must also meet either the member of household test or the relationship test. Under the member of household test, the parent must have lived with you for the entire tax year as a member of your household. Alternatively, if they do not live with you, they must be related to you in a specified way, such as being your biological parent, stepparent, or grandparent.

The joint return test states the parent cannot file a joint tax return for the year. An exception applies if the joint return is filed solely to claim a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid, and neither spouse would have a tax liability if they filed separately. The parent must also be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, U.S. resident alien, or a resident of Canada or Mexico.

Calculating Support for a Parent

Support generally includes amounts spent on food, lodging, clothing, education, medical and dental care, recreation, and transportation.

When calculating the value of support, the fair rental value of lodging is included if the parent lives in your home. This fair rental value encompasses a reasonable allowance for the use of appliances, utilities, and furniture. If expenses like groceries are bought for the entire household, the cost must be divided among all household members to determine the portion attributable to the parent.

Certain items do not count as support for tax purposes. These include federal, state, and local income taxes paid by the parent from their own income, Social Security and Medicare taxes, life insurance premiums, and funeral expenses. Scholarships received by the parent are also typically excluded from the support calculation.

A parent’s own funds, such as Social Security benefits or pensions, are considered part of their total support only to the extent they are actually spent on their own support. If a parent receives income but saves or invests a portion of it, that unspent amount is not factored into their total support for the year. You must compare the amount you contributed to their support against the total amount of support received from all sources, including their own spent funds.

If two or more individuals collectively provide more than half of a parent’s support, but no single person provides over half, a multiple support agreement may be used. This allows one person to claim the parent as a dependent, provided that person contributes more than 10% of the parent’s total support. Each other person who contributed more than 10% must sign a written statement waiving their right to claim the parent for that year. Form 2120, Multiple Support Declaration, is filed with your return to indicate this agreement.

Tax Benefits and Considerations

Claiming a parent as a dependent can offer several tax benefits, such as the Credit for Other Dependents. This nonrefundable credit can reduce your tax liability directly and can be worth up to $500 per qualifying dependent.

This credit is available for dependents who are not eligible for the Child Tax Credit, including qualifying relatives of any age. The credit begins to phase out when a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income exceeds certain thresholds, such as $200,000 for single filers and $400,000 for married couples filing jointly. Even with a relatively high income, a partial credit may still be available.

You may also deduct medical expenses paid for a dependent parent. If the parent qualifies as your dependent, you can include their medical and dental expenses when calculating your own medical expense deduction. This deduction is subject to a limitation, allowing only the amount of expenses exceeding 7.5% of your adjusted gross income to be deducted. You can include expenses paid for someone who would have been your dependent, except they had too much gross income or filed a joint return.

Reporting a Dependent Parent on Your Tax Return

Reporting a dependent parent on your tax return requires their full name and Social Security number. The primary form for individual income tax is Form 1040.

This information is typically entered on the first page of Form 1040, in the section designated for dependents. You will list their name, Social Security number, and their relationship to you. If you are claiming the Credit for Other Dependents, this credit is calculated and reported on Schedule 3 (Form 1040), which is an additional form attached to your main tax return.

Schedule 3 is used for reporting various nonrefundable credits not directly included on Form 1040. The total amount from Schedule 3 is then transferred to your Form 1040, reducing your overall tax liability.