My 17 year old son accidentally claimed himself on his tax return

How does this affect the amount of tax refund the parent would miss out on if they don't claim the dependent? And does the 17yo son get any benefit from claiming himself or did he just mess up both their returns?

Not claiming a dependent can significantly impact your refund - possibly reducing it by thousands depending on your income level and eligibility for credits like the Child Tax Credit or education credits. The exact amount varies based on your tax bracket and specific situation. The 17-year-old likely gets very little benefit from claiming himself. If his income is low (which is typical for most teenagers with part-time jobs), the standard deduction probably already eliminates his tax liability. By claiming himself, he might get a slightly larger refund, but it's almost always financially better overall for the parent to claim the dependent.

Does taxr.ai actually help with the amendment process itself or just tell you what to fix? I'm dealing with a similar issue but with my college student who filed wrong.

I'm skeptical about these tax services. How do you know it's secure? Like sending all my tax docs to some random website seems risky. Did they actually help resolve the issue faster than just calling IRS?

They don't file the amendment for you, but they give you the exact instructions on what forms to use and how to complete them correctly. Their report outlined which specific lines on which forms had the conflict, which made it super simple to fix myself. Much clearer than the generic advice I got from calling the IRS help line. Regarding security, I totally get the concern! That's why I checked them out first - they use bank-level encryption for all documents and don't store your personal docs after analysis. And yes, it was way faster than the IRS route. The IRS kept transferring me between departments while taxr.ai identified the exact issue in minutes and gave me clear steps to resolve it.

How does this Claimyr thing actually work? Do they charge you just to wait on hold? I don't understand why I'd pay for something I can do myself.

This sounds like a scam. There's no way to "skip the line" with the IRS. They're just charging you to do what you could do yourself for free - wait on hold.

It's not about skipping the line, it's about not having to sit on hold yourself. You enter your phone number, and their system calls the IRS and navigates through all the menu options and waits on hold for you. When an IRS agent is about to pick up, Claimyr calls you and connects you directly to the agent. You don't have to sit with a phone to your ear for hours. The reason I tried it is because I kept calling, waiting 30+ minutes, and then getting disconnected or having to hang up for work or family reasons. Having a system that holds your place and only rings you when a human is actually there was totally worth it. The point isn't to skip ahead - you still wait your turn - but you don't have to actively sit on hold the entire time.

Won't filing an extension delay my refund though? We were counting on that money for some home repairs. Is there any way to speed up the amendment process?

Filing an extension only extends the time you have to file - it doesn't extend the time to pay any taxes due. If you're expecting a refund, then yes, waiting would delay receiving that money. Unfortunately, there's no way to expedite amendment processing - they take the time they take (typically 8-16 weeks). Your other option is to file without claiming your son this year, which would process normally but likely result in a smaller refund than you're entitled to. You could then file your own amended return later to claim him once his amendment is processed, but that adds another long wait for the additional refund amount.

Even if he wasn't required to file, he should still file to get back any withholding! My daughter made about $5,000 last summer and got back every penny that was withheld. Missing out on that refund would be a waste.

This is such great advice about keeping records! I'm dealing with a similar situation right now and hadn't thought about documenting all my IRS calls. Quick question - when you say to get copies of your son's filed return, how do you actually get that if he filed electronically? My daughter used some free filing software and I'm not sure she saved a copy of what she actually submitted. Can you request that from the IRS or do we need to try to recreate it from the software she used?

@70c645b03141 Great question about getting copies of the filed return! If your daughter used free filing software, most of them (like TurboTax Free, H&R Block Free, etc.) should have saved a PDF copy in her account that she can download and print. She just needs to log back into whatever service she used. If for some reason that's not available, you can request a "Return Transcript" from the IRS using Form 4506-T, but that can take 5-10 business days to receive by mail. There's also an online option at irs.gov where she can create an account and view/download her return transcript immediately if she can verify her identity. The transcript won't be as detailed as the original return, but it'll show the key information like whether she claimed herself as a dependent, her filing status, and income amounts. That should be enough to see exactly what went wrong and help with the amendment process. Definitely try the software route first though - it's much faster and you'll get the complete return exactly as it was filed!

@70c645b03141 Good question about getting copies! If your daughter used free filing software, she should be able to log back into that platform and view/download her submitted return - most services keep records for at least a year. Check her email too, as many filing services automatically send a PDF copy of the submitted return. If that doesn't work, you can request a transcript or copy from the IRS directly. Form 4506-T gets you a free transcript (which shows the key info), or Form 4506 gets you an actual copy of the return for a small fee. The transcript is usually sufficient for figuring out what dependency boxes were checked. You can also call the IRS and they can tell you over the phone what filing status and dependency info they have on file. The online IRS account portal at irs.gov also lets you view basic return information if she can set up an account. That might be the fastest way to see what was actually filed!

@70c645b03141 Great question! If your daughter used free filing software like TurboTax Free Edition, FreeTaxUSA, or others, she should be able to log back into her account and download/print a copy of her filed return. Most software keeps filed returns available for at least a year, sometimes longer. If for some reason she can't access the software account or the return isn't saved there, you can request a copy directly from the IRS using Form 4506-T (Request for Transcript of Tax Return). This is free and usually takes 5-10 business days. You can also request it online at irs.gov if you can verify your identity through their system. The transcript will show you exactly what was filed, including which boxes were checked for dependency status. Having this documentation makes it much easier to complete the 1040X amendment form correctly and explain the error to IRS agents if you need to call them.

@70c645b03141 Good question about getting copies of the filed return! If your daughter used free filing software, she should be able to log back into her account and download/print a copy of her filed return - most software keeps records of submitted returns for at least a year. If that doesn't work, you can request a copy from the IRS, but it takes time. You'd need to file Form 4506-T (Request for Transcript of Tax Return) or call their automated line at 1-800-908-9946. The transcript shows the key info from her filed return, though it's not as detailed as the actual return. But honestly, for fixing a dependency issue, you probably don't need the full return. The main thing you need to know is whether she checked the box saying she couldn't be claimed as a dependent. If she filed electronically and got a confirmation, that usually means she did check that box (since that's what would cause the parent's return to be rejected). The amendment process is pretty straightforward once you know that's the issue that needs fixing.