Can I claim my Mother as a Dependent when she's married and filing with my Dad?

Yes, you can potentially claim your mother as a dependent even if she files jointly with your father, but there are specific requirements you need to meet. For your mother to qualify as your dependent, she must pass all five tests for a Qualifying Relative: 1) She can't be a qualifying child of another taxpayer, 2) She must be related to you or have lived with you all year, 3) Her gross income must be less than $4,700 (for 2025 filing), 4) You must provide more than half of her total support for the year, and 5) She can't file a joint return with your father UNLESS they're only filing jointly to claim a refund and would have no tax liability if filing separately. That last point is the key here. If your parents are filing jointly only to get a refund and would have zero tax liability filing separately, then you can still claim your mother as a dependent. This exception exists specifically for situations like yours. Since you mentioned their only income is Social Security of about $13,500 combined, they likely have no tax liability, which would meet this exception.

I went through a similar situation last year and was pulling my hair out trying to understand all the rules. I finally found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which helped me sort through my dependency questions. I uploaded my parents' documents and mine, and it analyzed everything to confirm I could claim my dad while they filed jointly (they had similar social security income situation). The tool walked me through all the qualifying relative tests and even flagged that I needed to document my support contributions since that's something the IRS sometimes questions. I was surprised how straightforward it made everything - especially figuring out that joint filing exception that the first commenter mentioned.

I wanted to follow up about taxr.ai since I decided to try it after seeing the recommendation here. I was in a similar situation with my in-laws living with us. The tool actually identified that I could claim both of them as dependents despite them filing jointly, since they had no tax liability. It saved me from making a mistake - I was only going to claim one of them! The tool showed me the exact IRS rules that applied to my situation and even generated a PDF summary I could keep for my records. Definitely made tax season less stressful knowing I was doing everything by the book.

If you're still confused after getting answers online, you might want to speak directly with the IRS. I had a similar dependent situation last year and spent DAYS trying to get through to them. Finally discovered Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me connected to an IRS agent in under 20 minutes instead of the hours or days I was experiencing before. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was skeptical at first, but I had a complex situation with claiming my parent as a dependent while they received both Social Security and a small pension. The IRS agent was able to confirm exactly what I needed to do and what documentation to keep. Having that official confirmation gave me peace of mind that I wasn't making a mistake on my return.

I need to eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway since I was desperate for answers about my dependent situation. I had been trying to reach the IRS for weeks with no luck. It actually worked! I got connected to an IRS representative in about 25 minutes. The agent confirmed that I could claim my mother as a dependent even though she files jointly with my father, as long as they meet that exception about having no tax liability if filing separately. She also explained exactly what documentation I should keep to prove I provide more than half their support. Honestly this saved me so much stress. Now I have written notes from my conversation with the actual IRS rather than just hoping I interpreted the rules correctly.

One thing to consider - if you claim your mother as a dependent, make sure you're also accounting for the medical expense deduction if you're paying for her healthcare. You can deduct medical expenses you paid for a dependent that exceed 7.5% of your AGI. With older parents, this can actually be a significant deduction - especially if you're paying for medications, doctor visits, or specialized care that insurance doesn't fully cover.

Has anybody run into issues with the IRS questioning your support calculation? I claimed my aunt last year and got a letter requesting proof I provided more than 50% of her support. It was such a headache!

I'm dealing with a very similar situation with my grandmother who moved in with us last year. She's married to my grandfather and they want to file jointly, but I'm covering most of their living expenses since they're on a fixed income from Social Security. After reading through all these responses, it sounds like the key is whether they would have zero tax liability if filing separately. In my case, their combined Social Security is about $16,000 annually, so they likely wouldn't owe any taxes filing separately either. One thing I'm wondering about - do I need to calculate the support test for each parent individually, or can I look at their combined expenses? For example, if I'm paying $1,200/month for their housing costs, do I split that between them when calculating whether I provide more than 50% support for each one? Also, has anyone had experience with the IRS accepting utility bills and grocery receipts as documentation? I've been keeping everything, but I want to make sure I'm tracking the right types of expenses in case I get audited.

I've been through this exact scenario with my parents who moved in with me two years ago. The good news is that you can absolutely claim your mother as a dependent while your parents file jointly, as long as they meet that joint filing exception everyone mentioned. One piece of advice I wish I'd gotten earlier - start documenting your support contributions NOW if you haven't already. I learned this the hard way when the IRS requested documentation. Create a simple monthly expense tracker that includes: - Housing costs (use fair rental value for the space they occupy - I calculated what a 2-bedroom apartment would rent for in my area and divided by the bedrooms in my house) - Utilities (divide by number of household members) - Food expenses (keep grocery receipts and estimate what portion goes to them) - Medical expenses you pay on their behalf - Transportation costs if you drive them places - Any other support like clothing, personal care items, etc. The 50% support test can be tricky to calculate, but with your parents' income at $13,500 combined, you're likely well over the threshold. Just make sure you're calculating it correctly - their total support includes what YOU provide plus what THEY provide for themselves from their own income. Also, don't forget that claiming them as dependents might make you eligible for additional tax benefits beyond just the dependency exemption. If you're paying medical expenses for them, that could potentially push you into itemizing territory depending on your other deductions. Good luck with your tax situation!