Can my 18-year-old son file his own tax return if I claimed him as dependent?

Yes, your son absolutely can (and probably should) file his own tax return! 😊 The key is that he needs to check the box that says "Someone can claim you as a dependent" on his 1040. This doesn't mean he can't file - it just alerts the IRS that someone else is claiming him. If he had federal taxes withheld from his paychecks, he'll likely get those back as a refund. Even with minimal income, filing is usually worthwhile for young folks.

I went through this last year with my daughter! I was so confused at first. What worked for us was having her file as "can be claimed as dependent" and she still got her refund for the taxes withheld from her paychecks. I remember being worried it would mess up my return somehow, but it didn't. Just make sure he doesn't try to claim any credits that are only for independent filers - that's where we almost made a mistake.

OMG this EXACT situation drove me CRAZY last year! 😤 Called the IRS like 27 times and couldn't get through to anyone! So frustrating! Finally used Claimyr (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) and got connected to an agent in like 15 minutes. They confirmed my son could file his own return even though I claimed him as dependent. He just had to check the box saying he could be claimed by someone else. Saved me hours of stress trying to figure it out on my own.

I've been in your exact shoes. My son turned 18 last year, had a part-time job at a restaurant, and I claimed him as a dependent. He filed his own return, checked the box that he could be claimed as a dependent, and everything went smoothly. He still got a refund for the federal taxes that were withheld from his paychecks. The only hiccup we had was that he initially tried to claim some education credits that he wasn't eligible for since I claimed him. Once we fixed that, no problems at all.

Unlike what others are saying about filing separately, we actually had our son give us his W-2 and we included his income on our return using Form 8814 (Parents' Election to Report Child's Interest and Dividends). This worked better for our situation because his income was under $12,500. This approach compared to him filing separately saved us time and paperwork, though it might not be the right choice for everyone depending on the exact income amounts and your state tax situation.

Tax professional here. There's an important distinction to make regarding your son's filing requirements. If your 18-year-old son is a dependent with earned income (W-2 wages), he has a filing requirement if his earned income exceeds $12,950 for tax year 2023. However, even if he's not required to file, he should still consider filing if any federal income tax was withheld from his paychecks, as he'll likely receive that money back as a refund. When he files, he must indicate on Form 1040 that he can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's return. This doesn't prevent him from filing - it just impacts which deductions and credits he's eligible to claim.

Another approach to consider: 1. Have your son gather all his tax documents (W-2, etc.) 2. Help him create an account on one of the free filing services 3. Walk through the process together, making sure he checks "Someone can claim me as a dependent" 4. Review the return before submitting to ensure no improper credits are claimed 5. Have him file electronically for fastest processing This is what I did with my daughter last year. It was actually a good learning experience for her to understand how taxes work, while I was there to guide her through it.

Great question! I just went through this same situation with my 19-year-old daughter. Here's what I learned: Your son can absolutely file his own return even though you claimed him as a dependent. The key steps are: 1. He needs to check the box "Someone can claim you as a dependent" on his Form 1040 2. He can still get a refund of any federal taxes that were withheld from his paychecks 3. This won't affect your return at all - you can both file without any issues One thing to watch out for: Make sure he doesn't try to claim the standard deduction amount for independent filers or any education credits that only apply to non-dependents. The tax software should automatically adjust this when he indicates he's a dependent, but it's worth double-checking. Since he only made $4,200, he's not required to file, but if any taxes were withheld from his paychecks, filing will get him that money back. We used FreeTaxUSA for my daughter and it handled the dependent filing situation really well. Hope this helps ease your mind - it's actually a pretty straightforward process once you know the steps!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with the exact same situation with my 18-year-old who worked at Target last year. One additional tip I'd add: make sure your son keeps a copy of his filed return for his records, even though the amounts are small. When he applies for financial aid for college (FAFSA), they'll ask for his tax return information. Having filed his own return actually made the FAFSA process cleaner for us since his income was already properly documented. Also, if he plans to work again this year, this experience will make next year's filing much easier since he'll already understand the process. My daughter is now confident enough to handle her taxes independently after we walked through it together the first time. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it's reassuring to know this is such a common and straightforward situation!

This is such a timely question! I'm dealing with the same situation with my 17-year-old who will turn 18 next month and has been working at a local restaurant since last summer. From reading through all these responses, it sounds like the consensus is pretty clear: your son should definitely file his own return and check the "can be claimed as dependent" box. What I'm taking away from everyone's experiences is that this is actually a really common situation and the process is more straightforward than it initially seems. I especially appreciate the point about this being a good learning opportunity. My daughter went through this two years ago, and while I was nervous about "doing it wrong," it ended up being a great way for her to understand how taxes work before she becomes fully independent. One thing I'd add is to make sure you have all his tax documents ready before you start - W-2, any 1099s if applicable, and maybe print out the instructions for the "can be claimed as dependent" section so you can reference it while helping him file. Having everything organized upfront made the process much smoother for us. Thanks for asking this question - it's helping me feel more confident about handling this with my son when the time comes!