Tax Return Planning & Filing Question of the Week:

If I claim my daughter as a dependent because she is a full-time student, can she claim herself as a dependent when she files her own return?

No exemption is allowed to an individual that can be claimed on another taxpayer’s tax return. Students working part-time may not claim themselves on their own tax return if their parents are entitled to claim them as dependents. It does not matter if the parents actually claim the student, the student is not entitled to the deduction. A full time student that is under the age of 24 as of December 31st is eligible to be claimed on their parents’ return and is not allowed to claim an exemption for themselves.

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