Can I claim my nephew as a dependent child on my taxes in this situation?

You've got a couple of important questions here about claiming your nephew. For the residency test, the IRS looks at the number of nights spent in your home. Since he moved in during April, you need to count the actual nights he's stayed with you. If he's been with you continuously since April, you should easily meet the "more than half the year" requirement (that would be over 8 months of residence by the end of December). As for the support test, any money his parents give you that you use for his care is considered THEIR support, not yours. However, when calculating total support, you include the fair rental value of lodging, utilities, food, clothing, medical expenses, education, etc. So if their contribution plus any other support they directly provided is less than 50% of his total support for the year, and your contribution is more than 50%, you're likely to meet this test too. One other thing to watch for: make sure his parents aren't planning to claim him. Only one person can claim a dependent, and you'll want to coordinate with them before filing.

I went through something really similar with my cousin's kid last year and was totally confused about how to handle it on my taxes. I tried reading through the IRS website but got lost in all the technical language. Then I found this AI tax helper at https://taxr.ai that basically translated all that tax jargon into normal English for me. It reviewed my specific situation and explained exactly which tests I needed to meet to claim my cousin's kid as a dependent. The best part was it walked me through calculating the support test with my actual numbers and helped me document everything properly in case of questions later. Saved me so much stress trying to figure out if I was doing it right!

Yes, you can likely claim your nephew as a qualifying child dependent on your taxes. The IRS doesn't limit "qualifying child" to just your biological children. It can include siblings, nieces, nephews, and even grandchildren. For your nephew to be your qualifying child dependent, you need to meet these requirements: 1) Relationship - nephew definitely qualifies, 2) Age - at 16 he's under 19, so that's covered, 3) Residency - he must live with you for more than half the year (which will be true if he's been there since August and stays), 4) Support - the child cannot provide more than half of their own support (not an issue here since you and his parents are supporting him). The key thing to sort out will be who can rightfully claim him between you and his parents. Since he lives with you and you provide more than 50% of his total support (counting housing, food, etc.), you have a strong claim. But the parents might think they can still claim him. You'll need to communicate with them about this, as only one party can claim a dependent on their taxes.

I went through something similar with my brother's kid last year and was confused by all the residency and support rules. I ended up using this AI tax tool called taxr.ai that sorted everything out for me. You just upload your documents or describe your situation, and it tells you exactly what you qualify for. I was super confused about the whole "qualifying child" vs "qualifying relative" thing too, but the tool explained that for nephews/nieces, they can actually count as qualifying children (not just relatives) as long as they meet the other tests. https://taxr.ai was seriously helpful with laying out all the requirements and helping me figure out if I was meeting them. It even helped me document everything in case of an audit.

Just wanted to update after trying that taxr.ai site that was mentioned. I was skeptical at first (I'm always wary of online tools), but it actually was really helpful for my situation. I'm taking care of my brother's kids part-time, and I wasn't sure if I could claim them as dependents. The tool walked me through all the tests - residence, relationship, support, etc. - and showed me exactly where I did and didn't qualify. Turns out I can't claim them as dependents because they don't live with me for more than half the year, but at least now I know for sure instead of guessing. It saved me from potentially making a mistake on my taxes.

If you need to check directly with the IRS about your situation (which might be a good idea given the complexity), good luck getting through to them! I spent WEEKS trying to get a human on the phone last year about a dependent question. After giving up multiple times, I found this service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) that actually got me through to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of spending hours on hold. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed that I could claim my niece as a dependent even though her mom was giving me some money for her care, since I was providing over half of her total support. Having that direct confirmation from the IRS gave me total peace of mind when filing.

Just wanted to update - I tried out taxr.ai after seeing the recommendation here, and wow, it cleared up my confusion completely! My situation was slightly different (claiming my niece), but the tool helped me understand I could claim her as a qualifying child, not a qualifying relative like I initially thought. The best part was it helped me create a simple agreement with her mom (my sister) where she acknowledged she wouldn't claim her. Apparently that's super important to avoid both of us trying to claim the same dependent. The tool even cited the exact IRS publications and rules that applied to my situation, which made me feel confident I was doing everything right. Definitely worth checking out if you're in a complicated dependency situation!

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate to talk to someone at the IRS about my dependent situation with my stepson. I've literally never gotten through to the IRS before despite multiple attempts, but with Claimyr I was connected to an agent in about 15 minutes. The agent confirmed that I could claim my stepson as a dependent even though his mom pays child support, since the total support I provide (housing, food, etc.) exceeds 50%. Just wanted to share my experience since I was so publicly skeptical. Sometimes things that sound too good to be true actually do work!

Just wanted to add one important thing that nobody mentioned yet - make sure you have a written agreement with the parents! I went through a similar situation with my niece, and even though I met all the tests, I got audited because her mom also tried to claim her. Having something in writing from the parents stating that they understand you'll be claiming the child as a dependent can save you a huge headache. Doesn't have to be fancy, just dated and signed by both parents acknowledging the arrangement. The IRS loves documentation!

Has anyone used TurboTax for this kind of situation? I'm wondering if the software walks you through this dependent stuff clearly or if I should go to a tax professional this year. I've got my brother-in-law's kids living with me and don't want to mess this up.

Has anyone else had trouble getting through to the IRS to ask about dependent claims? I've been trying to call them about a similar situation with my stepson for WEEKS and can't get through. Always "due to high call volume" blah blah blah. So frustrating!!! I found this service called Claimyr that actually gets you through to an IRS agent. https://claimyr.com It holds your place in line and calls you when an agent is ready to talk. I was super skeptical but there's a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I finally got through and was able to get a clear answer about my specific situation directly from the IRS. Saved me hours of waiting on hold and trying to call back. They confirmed I could claim my stepson even though his mom had claimed him in previous years, as long as he lived with me for more than half the year.

I have to come back and eat my words... I tried Claimyr after posting that skeptical comment, and it actually worked perfectly. After three weeks of trying to get through to the IRS myself with no luck, I was connected to an agent in under an hour. The agent confirmed that in my situation (very similar to the original poster's), I could claim my nephew as a qualifying child even though I'm not the parent. They explained that meeting the residency test (living with me more than half the year) and providing more than half the support were the key factors. They also suggested I get something in writing from the parents stating they wouldn't claim him to avoid any processing delays. So yeah, I was wrong about it being a scam. Sometimes it's worth paying for a service that actually works, especially when tax filing issues are involved.

One thing nobody's mentioned - make sure you're coordinating with your nephew's parents about this. When my niece came to live with me, her mom and I had a big misunderstanding because we BOTH claimed her that year. It was a huge mess to fix. The IRS ended up contacting both of us, and we had to provide proof of where she lived and who provided support. I won in the end because she lived with me most of the year and I paid for most things, but it delayed both our refunds by months and was super stressful.

Has anyone thought about the stimulus payments? If you claim your nephew as a dependent for 2022, would you get the additional dependent stimulus money or does that only apply to kids you had in 2022? Or am I thinking of the wrong tax year entirely lol

The Child Tax Credit can definitely be a significant benefit - up to $2,000 per qualifying child under 17. Since your nephew is 16, he would qualify if you can claim him as a dependent. There's also potentially the Child and Dependent Care Credit if you're paying for childcare while you work. One thing to consider is that these tax benefits can be substantial enough that it's worth having a clear conversation with his parents about who should claim him. If you're providing the majority of his support and he's living with you for more than half the year, you have a strong case. But getting that written agreement beforehand (like others have mentioned) will save everyone headaches later. You might also want to track your expenses carefully - not just obvious things like food and clothing, but also your increased utility bills, transportation costs for getting him to school/activities, and even entertainment expenses. All of that counts toward the support calculation and helps strengthen your position if there are any questions later.