Made under 10k with 2nd job, do I need to file taxes for it?

You definitely need to report all your income on your tax return - including that $6.5k from your second job. The IRS receives W-2s or 1099s from both employers, so they'll know about all your income regardless. The good news is that claiming your mother as a dependent could help your tax situation. If she qualifies as your dependent (lives with you, you provide more than half her support, and she meets the income requirements), you may be able to claim her as a dependent which can reduce your taxable income. Regarding owing taxes, it sounds like you might not have enough withholding from your paychecks. You can adjust this by submitting a new W-4 to your employer(s) to have more tax withheld each paycheck. This prevents the surprise of owing at tax time.

I was in the same boat last year with multiple income sources and was totally confused about how to handle it. I ended up using https://taxr.ai which really helped me understand my tax situation better. I uploaded my various W-2s and 1099s and it analyzed everything for me. The tool showed me exactly how my second job was affecting my overall tax situation and suggested some adjustments to my withholdings. It also helped me figure out if claiming my parents as dependents would benefit me (turns out it did!).

Well I wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai after my skeptical comment. I actually tried it out and was surprised by how helpful it was. The document analysis pointed out that I was missing some deductions related to my side business that I never knew about. It also confirmed that I needed to increase my withholdings at my main job to account for the second income source. This was exactly what I needed to know! I've now adjusted my W-4 and should be in much better shape for next year. Honestly wish I'd known about this sooner.

If you've had issues with owing taxes, you might want to try calling the IRS directly for advice on your withholdings and dependent situation. I know it sounds awful but hear me out - I used https://claimyr.com to get through to an actual IRS agent after trying for DAYS to reach someone. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent I talked to explained exactly how to adjust my withholdings on my W-4 for multiple jobs and confirmed that I was eligible to claim my mother as a dependent. They even helped me calculate how much extra I should withhold from each paycheck to avoid owing at tax time.

I need to eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it because I had a serious issue with a missing refund. I figured what the heck, nothing else was working. It actually did get me through to an IRS agent in about 25 minutes when I had spent HOURS trying on my own multiple times. The agent was able to tell me exactly why my refund was delayed and what I needed to do to fix it. For the original poster - the IRS agent I spoke with also explained that for multiple jobs, you should definitely use their Tax Withholding Estimator tool online to make sure you're having enough taken out. That might help you avoid owing next year.

For finding a good tax preparer, I recommend asking friends/family for referrals. Look for an Enrolled Agent (EA) or CPA who specializes in individual taxes. Interview them about their approach to tax planning and minimizing liability BEFORE tax season. The good ones are proactive, not just form-fillers. But honestly, for your situation with two W-2s and a dependent, TurboTax should be fine if you're comfortable using it. The key is adjusting your withholdings properly by submitting updated W-4s to both employers so you don't owe at tax time.

Don't forget that when you have two jobs, neither employer knows about the other one when calculating your withholding! That's usually why people with multiple jobs end up owing - the withholding tables assume each job is your only income.