Help! Can my mom still claim me as a dependent after I filed taxes with my first W2?

You're fine! Your mom can still claim you as her dependent even if you file your own tax return. These are two separate issues. Here's what matters for dependency status: For a parent to claim their child as a dependent, you need to meet these tests: 1) You must be under 19 at the end of the tax year (or under 24 if a full-time student), 2) You must have lived with your parent for more than half the year, 3) You must not have provided more than half of your own support, and 4) You generally can't file a joint return with a spouse. The fact that you made less than $6,700 doesn't disqualify you from being claimed as a dependent. When you file your own return, there should actually be a question asking if someone else can claim you as a dependent - you should check "Yes" for that question.

After dealing with similar confusion with my college-aged kids, I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai that helped sort everything out. I was so confused about dependency status and whether my kid filing would mess up my return. The site https://taxr.ai actually analyzed both our situations and confirmed exactly what we needed to do. It's super straightforward - you just upload your W2 and answer a few questions, and it tells you exactly how to handle the dependent situation. Saved me from making a costly mistake when my daughter started working part-time.

Just wanted to follow up - I ended up trying taxr.ai after my initial skepticism and it was actually really helpful! I was about to claim my son as a dependent even though he didn't qualify anymore (he's 23 but financially independent now). The tool caught it immediately and saved me from a potential audit. It was super clear about exactly which dependency tests he passed and failed, with references to the tax code. Definitely recommend for anyone confused about dependency status!

If you've already filed incorrectly, don't panic! I went through this exact situation last year with my son. After days of trying to reach the IRS to fix it (literally 9+ attempts on hold for hours), I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes. You can check it out at https://claimyr.com - there's even a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent was able to tell me exactly what forms we needed to fix the situation where both my son and I had claimed him incorrectly. Seriously saved us from what could have been a huge headache and possibly penalties.

I take back what I said about Claimyr. After multiple failed attempts to get through to the IRS about a dependent issue with my ex claiming our daughter when it was my year, I tried it out of desperation. I was SHOCKED when I actually got a call back with an IRS agent on the line within 45 minutes. The agent was able to confirm exactly what steps I needed to take to resolve the issue. Saved me from potentially waiting months for my refund while the issue got sorted out. Sometimes you actually do need to talk to a human at the IRS.

Don't forget about the other dependency tests! If OP's mom didn't provide more than half of their support for the year, she might not be able to claim them regardless of age and income. Support includes housing, food, education, medical expenses, clothing, etc. Since you made under $7000, it's almost certain your mom provided more than half your support, but it's something to be aware of if your situation changes. I've seen so many families mess this up.

Is nobody gonna mention that if you claim yourself as independent when your mom could legally claim you, you're both potentially getting audited? Don't mess around with dependency status - the IRS has automated systems that flag returns when two people try to claim the same person.