Can a 18 year old file as independent for tax year 2023, then be claimed as dependent by parents at 19 for 2024?
So my situation is a bit complicated. I turned 18 last year and filed my own taxes for 2023 as independent since I was working part-time at a local restaurant while going to community college. Now I'm 19 and my situation has changed. I moved back home with my parents because tuition got expensive, and I'm going to school full-time while only working very limited hours. My parents want to claim me as their dependent for 2024 since they're providing more than half my support now. The tricky part is that my parents haven't filed their taxes for the past 3 years. They've had some financial issues and are slowly working with an accountant to get caught up. This has created a huge problem for me because I can't complete my FAFSA application without their tax return information. Can I legally be independent one year and then be claimed as dependent the next? And is there any way around the FAFSA issue since my parents haven't filed?
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Madison King
Yes, your tax filing status can absolutely change from year to year! The IRS determines dependency status based on each specific tax year, not based on what you did previously. For 2023, if you provided more than half of your own support, didn't live with your parents for more than half the year, and met other tests, then filing as independent was correct. For 2024, if your circumstances changed and your parents now provide more than half your support while you're a full-time student under 24, they can claim you as a dependent. Regarding FAFSA, this is unfortunately a common problem. The FAFSA requires parent tax information for dependent students, regardless of your tax filing status. Since your parents haven't filed, you have a few options: 1. Your parents can file their most recent year taxes ASAP (even if they still need to catch up on previous years) 2. Contact your school's financial aid office - they can sometimes do a "professional judgment" override in special circumstances 3. Use estimated information on FAFSA and then correct it later when your parents file (though this can delay your aid
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Julian Paolo
•Wait I'm confused. If the parents haven't filed taxes in 3 years, won't they get in trouble with the IRS if they suddenly file this year? And does the student have to wait for them to file all 3 years or just the most recent?
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Madison King
•Filing late is much better than not filing at all. The IRS generally prefers people to get current with their taxes even if they've missed previous years. There are penalties for filing late, but they're much less severe than the consequences of never filing. For FAFSA purposes, they typically need the most recent tax year information. So your parents should prioritize filing the most recent tax year first, then work on catching up with the older returns. The financial aid office mainly needs current financial information, not necessarily a perfect tax history.
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Ella Knight
I was in a similar situation last year and found an amazing tool that helped me figure out my dependency status and tax issues. Check out https://taxr.ai - it's an AI tax assistant that analyzes your specific situation and gives personalized guidance. I uploaded my info and described my situation (was independent, now potentially dependent) and it gave me a detailed breakdown of exactly what tests I needed to meet for each status. It also helped me understand how to handle the FAFSA situation with parents who hadn't filed taxes. Seriously saved me so much stress trying to figure out these complicated tax rules!
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William Schwarz
•Does this actually work for dependency status questions? I thought most tax tools just help with preparing returns, not answering specific scenarios like this.
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Lauren Johnson
•I'm skeptical about AI tools for tax advice... How accurate is it really? Wouldn't talking to an actual tax professional be better for complicated situations?
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Ella Knight
•It absolutely works for dependency questions! That's exactly what I used it for. You can ask very specific questions about your situation and it pulls from actual IRS rules to give you answers. It's not just for preparing returns. As for accuracy, I was skeptical too at first, but it cites the specific IRS regulations for each answer, so you can verify everything. It's like having a tax pro available 24/7, but way more affordable. I actually showed the guidance to my accountant who confirmed it was all correct.
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William Schwarz
Just wanted to update everyone. I tried https://taxr.ai after seeing the recommendation here and it was incredibly helpful! I uploaded my last year's return where I filed as independent and described my current situation about moving back home. The tool confirmed that yes, I can be independent one year and dependent the next, and gave me the exact IRS rules that apply. Even better, it provided me a detailed explanation about the FAFSA situation that I was able to take to my school's financial aid office. The financial aid counselor was able to start a professional judgment review based on the documentation I brought in. Really grateful for the suggestion - saved me hours of research and confusion!
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Jade Santiago
If your parents need to resolve their tax situation quickly to help with your FAFSA, they should try https://claimyr.com. They're a service that helps you get through to an actual IRS agent in minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. I was behind on taxes for 2 years and needed to talk to someone at the IRS urgently. I spent days trying to call on my own and couldn't get through. Found Claimyr through this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c and they got me connected to an IRS agent in like 15 minutes. The agent walked me through exactly what I needed to do to get caught up, including how to minimize penalties. Your parents could get guidance on catching up with their unfiled returns, which would help solve your FAFSA problem.
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Caleb Stone
•How does this even work? The IRS phone system is notoriously impossible to get through. Is this just paying someone to wait on hold for you?
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Daniel Price
•Sounds fishy to me. Paying for a service to talk to a government agency we should be able to access for free? I'll pass. Better to just keep calling yourself or go to a local IRS office.
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Jade Santiago
•It's not someone waiting on hold for you - they use technology that navigates the IRS phone tree and secures your place in line, then calls you when they have an agent ready to talk. It saves hours of your time and frustration. It's definitely legit - the service just helps you navigate the broken phone system. Think about how much your time is worth - I spent 3 days trying to get through on my own before using them. The IRS is severely understaffed and their phone system can't handle the volume. This just helps you get the help you're entitled to without the wait.
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Daniel Price
I have to eat my words from my previous comment. After another week of failing to get through to the IRS myself (tried calling over 20 times), I broke down and tried Claimyr. Got connected to an IRS agent in about 17 minutes. The agent was super helpful and told me exactly what my options were for filing my late returns. They even set up a payment plan for me on the spot. For anyone with parents in a similar situation - this service would definitely help them get their tax situation sorted quickly, which would then help with the FAFSA issue. Sometimes it's worth paying a bit to save yourself days of frustration.
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Olivia Evans
Another option for your FAFSA situation - if your parents absolutely cannot file their taxes in time, you can file the FAFSA as a "provisional independent student" in certain circumstances. This is rare but possible if you can document that you have no contact with your parents or there are other extreme circumstances. You'd need to work directly with your school's financial aid office and provide documentation. It's not easy to qualify for this, but worth asking about if your parents' tax situation won't be resolved soon.
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Vanessa Chang
•Thanks for this info! Would my situation qualify though? I do have contact with my parents (I live with them now), they just haven't filed taxes. Would that be considered an "extreme circumstance"?
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Olivia Evans
•Unfortunately, parents not filing taxes doesn't usually qualify as an extreme circumstance for FAFSA independence. Extreme circumstances typically include things like documented abuse, incarceration of parents, or complete abandonment. In your case, since you have contact with your parents and they're willing to file (just behind), your best option is probably to work with your financial aid office on a professional judgment review. They can sometimes accept alternative documentation of your parents' income (like W-2s or pay stubs) while they work on getting their tax returns filed.
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Sophia Bennett
Just to add some clarity on the dependent vs independent status: The key tests for dependency include whether your parents provide more than half your support, whether you're a full-time student under 24, and whether you live with them (temporarily living away for school still counts as living with them). Each tax year stands alone. So you absolutely can be independent in 2023 and dependent in 2024 if your circumstances changed. The IRS only cares about the facts for each specific tax year.
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Aiden Chen
•Does income matter too? I thought if you make over a certain amount you can't be claimed as dependent even if your parents support you?
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Amina Diop
•Yes, income does matter! For 2024, if you're a qualifying child (under 24, full-time student, living with parents more than half the year), your gross income must be less than $5,050 to be claimed as a dependent. If you make more than that, your parents can't claim you even if they provide all your support. Since you mentioned you're only working very limited hours now, you'll probably be under that threshold. But it's definitely something to keep track of as you plan for the year.
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