Can I claim my adult child and my grandchild as dependents on my tax return?

Based on your situation, you likely can claim both your son and granddaughter as dependents if you're providing more than half their support. For your son, he needs to have income under $4,800 for 2024 (for qualifying relative status). At 14 hours weekly at minimum wage, he's probably under that threshold. For your granddaughter, since she lived with you more than half the year and your son (her parent) doesn't have significant income, you could potentially claim her. However, here's where it gets tricky with the Earned Income Credit (EIC). The EIC is typically more valuable to lower-income filers. If your income is significantly higher than your son's, it might be more beneficial for him to file his own return, claim your granddaughter, and take the EIC himself - even if you claim him as your dependent. He can still file his own return while being your dependent.

I was in a similar situation last year and found that https://taxr.ai really helped me figure out my dependent situation. After trying to make sense of all the qualifying child/relative rules on my own, I uploaded my documents there and got a clear breakdown of who I could claim and how it affected credits like the EIC. Saved me from making mistakes that would have cost our family over $3,000 in credits. The site analyzed my son's income and my support level, then showed me exactly which filing arrangement would maximize our family's combined refund. They even helped identify that my son could file his own return AND still be my dependent - something I had no idea was possible.

Just wanted to update about my experience with taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here. I decided to try it since my situation with my daughter and grandson is pretty similar. It was eye-opening! The analysis showed that I was better off letting my daughter file her own return and claim my grandson for the EIC, while I still claimed her as a dependent on my return. We ended up with about $2,800 more combined than if I had claimed them both! The site explained that since my income was too high for the full EIC but my daughter qualified for the maximum, this "split" approach was optimal. It even flagged that my daughter's part-time job hadn't withheld enough taxes, which would have caused problems later. Definitely worth checking out if you're dealing with dependent questions.

If you're still confused after getting advice, you might want to talk to someone at the IRS directly. I was in tax limbo with dependent questions last year and tried calling for weeks. Always busy signals or 2+ hour hold times until I gave up. Then I found https://claimyr.com which got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The agent walked me through the exact dependent tests for my situation and confirmed I was eligible to claim both my adult son and granddaughter. What surprised me most was how the agent pointed out tax benefits I didn't know about, like the child and dependent care credit since I was paying for my granddaughter's daycare while my son worked.

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment, my frustration with the IRS reached a breaking point after spending 3 hours on hold only to get disconnected. I decided to try the service as a last resort. Not only did I get connected to an IRS rep in 20 minutes, the agent was incredibly helpful with my dependent situation. They confirmed I could claim my nephew who's been living with me but also warned me about potential conflicts if his mom tried to claim him too. They also guided me through documentation I should keep just in case there were questions later. The clarity I got was worth every penny, especially since I learned I was eligible for the Head of Household status which will save me about $2,000 compared to filing Single. Sometimes paying for convenience actually makes financial sense!

Don't forget to check if your son is still eligible for the Child Tax Credit for your granddaughter. Since he has custody, he might qualify even with his low income. For 2024, the Child Tax Credit is up to $2,000 per qualifying child. If he doesn't have enough tax liability to use the credit, part of it may be refundable through the Additional Child Tax Credit. Whatever you decide about claiming dependents, make sure you both don't claim the same person. The IRS will reject one of the returns and it causes headaches for everyone.

One thing nobody's mentioned is the head of household filing status. OP, if you claim your granddaughter as a dependent, you might qualify for HOH status which has better tax rates and a higher standard deduction than filing as Married Filing Separately. This could be another factor in deciding who claims who.

If your son's babymama (the ex) was the custodial parent for part of the year before the divorce was finalized, make sure she's not planning to claim the child too. Could cause major headaches. Whoever has the child for more nights during the year is considered the custodial parent for tax purposes, regardless of what the divorce decree says!! Just speaking from experience...caused me a 3 month refund delay last year.

This is a complex situation that requires careful planning to maximize your family's tax benefits. Based on what you've described, here are the key considerations: **For claiming your son as a dependent:** Since he's working part-time (about 14 hours weekly) and receiving minimal child support, his total income is likely well under the $4,800 threshold for 2024. If you're providing more than half his support (food, housing, etc.), you can claim him as a qualifying relative. **For your granddaughter:** This is where strategy becomes important. You have two main options: 1. **You claim both:** You get dependency exemptions for both, but miss out on EIC benefits since your income is likely too high. 2. **Split approach:** You claim your son as a dependent, but let him file his own return claiming your granddaughter. He could potentially receive significant EIC benefits (up to $3,995 for one child in 2024) plus the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit. **My recommendation:** Run the numbers both ways. The "split" approach often works better financially for families in your situation because the EIC and Child Tax Credit benefits for lower-income filers can exceed the dependency exemption value for higher-income taxpayers. Also verify the custody timeline - since the divorce was finalized in November and he got primary custody, make sure your granddaughter lived with your household for more than half the year to avoid conflicts with the ex-wife's potential claim. Consider consulting a tax professional to run both scenarios with your actual numbers.