How Much Does a Dependent Reduce Your Taxes?

Can you claim a dependent on your tax return? If so, there are federal tax breaks, such as the earned income tax credit (EITC) and the child tax credit (CTC), that can lower your tax bill or even increase your refund.

Here's a quick look at who qualifies as a dependent and how claiming one can affect your income tax return.

What Is a Qualified Dependent?

A dependent is someone for whom you provide at least half of their financial support during the year—for household expenses, medical care, education, clothing, and the like. If you have a dependent, you qualify for several tax benefits that could save you money at tax time.

An individual can be a dependent of only one taxpayer in a tax year. To qualify as a dependent, the person must:

• Be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, resident alien, or a resident of Canada or Mexico
• Have a valid taxpayer identification number (TIN) such as a Social Security number
• Not have filed a joint tax return for the year
• Not take a personal exemption if available for the tax year or claim someone else as a dependent. (The personal exemption has been suspended until at least 2025.)
  

Types of Dependents

Though all dependents must meet the general requirements listed above, you can't claim someone as a dependent unless they are your child or a qualifying relative. The IRS uses different tests to determine who qualifies.

IRS Qualifying Child Tests

Not all children are qualifying children under the tax laws. According to the IRS, a person must satisfy five tests to be a qualifying child. A qualifying child:

1. Relationship test: Must be your child or stepchild (whether by blood or adoption), foster child, sibling or stepsibling, or a descendant of any of them
2. Age test: Must be either under age 19 at the end of the tax year, under 24 if a full-time student and younger than you, or any age if permanently and totally disabled
3. Residency test: Must share a principal residence with you for more than half the tax year, with exceptions for temporary circumstances such as illness, education, vacation, birth, or death
   
4. Support test: Must provide less than half of their own support for the year.
5. Joint return: Must not file a joint return for the year, unless they file only to claim a refund of income tax withheld or estimated tax paid
   

IRS Qualifying Relative Tests

A person you claim as a qualifying relative must satisfy four tests. A qualifying relative:

1. Not a qualifying child test: Can't be your qualifying child or another taxpayer's qualifying child
2. Member of household or relationship test: Must live with you all year as a household member or related to you as your child, stepchild, foster child, or a descendent of any of them; your sibling, including half-siblings and step-siblings; your parent, step-parent, grandparent, or another direct ancestor (but not a foster parent); your aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew; or your daughter-in-law, son-in-law, mother-in-law, father-in-law, sister-in-law, or brother-in-law
3. Support test: Must receive more than half of their total support from you for the year
4. Gross income test: Must have a gross income less than $5,500 for 2024, unless the person is disabled and has income from a sheltered workshop

Children of Divorced or Separated Parents

In the case of divorced or legally separated parents, a child is generally the dependent of the custodial parent. The custodial parent is the one the child lived with for the greater number of nights during the year. If both parents had equal time during the tax year, the parent with the higher adjusted gross income (AGI) can make the claim.

Dependent Tax Credits and Deductions

A tax credit reduces the amount of tax you owe on a dollar-for-dollar basis. A tax deduction lowers your taxable income, so you owe less tax.

Of the two, tax credits are more favorable because they are subtracted off the top of your total taxes owed, saving you more money. You can claim several tax credits and deductions if you have a dependent.

Child Tax Credit (CTC)

The CTC is a tax benefit granted to taxpayers for each qualifying dependent child.

The maximum amount for the 2024 tax year is $2,000 for each qualifying child. The credit begins to phase out when the filer's modified adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 ($400,000 in case of a joint return).

The refundable portion of the credit, also known as the additional child tax credit, maxes out at $1,700 for 2024.

Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)

The EITC is a refundable tax credit that helps lower-income taxpayers reduce the amount of tax owed on a dollar-for-dollar basis. Though the credit is available to taxpayers who don't have children, those with dependents will receive a higher credit. The credit increases with the addition of each child to the family up to three children.

Here's a look at the EITC AGI limits and maximum credit amounts for the 2024 tax year. The maximums reflect the amount of the credit for filers with three or more children:

Child and Dependent Care Credit

The child and dependent care credit, which can be claimed using IRS Form 2441, provides relief to parents who pay for the care of a qualifying child or disabled dependent while working or looking for work. Depending on your income, you may qualify for both the child tax credit and the child and dependent care credit.

In the 2024 tax year, you can include up to $3,000 of eligible expenses for a maximum credit of $1,050 if you have one qualifying dependent when calculating the credit. It rises to $6,000 of eligible expenses and a $2,100 credit if you have two or more dependents.

The percentage of those expenses allowed as a credit depends on your income (and your spouse's if you file a joint return). The maximum percentage is 35%. As your AGI climbs, the credit is eventually reduced to $0. If your AGI is $438,000 or higher, you won't get the credit.

Student Loan Interest Deduction

The student loan interest deduction allows you to deduct up to $2,500 of the interest you paid on a student loan during the tax year. For example, if you fall into the 12% tax bracket and claim the full amount, the deduction would reduce your tax for the year by $300 ($2,500 × 12%).

If you paid less than $2,500 in student loan interest, your deduction is capped at the amount you paid. The student loan must be taken out for you, your spouse, or your dependent, which can be a qualifying child or a qualifying relative.

For 2024, the deduction gradually phases out starting at a modified AGI (MAGI) of $75,000 for single filers, and $155,000 for married couples filing jointly.

American Opportunity Tax Credit

The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) helps offset the cost of the first four years of a student's postsecondary education. The credit allows a maximum annual tax credit of $2,500 per eligible student for qualified education expenses.

If the credit brings your tax bill to $0, you can get a refund of up to 40% of the remaining credit (up to $1,000).

Either the student or someone who claims the student as a dependent can take the AOTC on their income tax return. Your MAGI must be $80,000 or less ($160,000 if filing jointly) to claim the full credit. The credit begins to phase out if your MAGI is between:

• $80,000 and $90,000 for single filers
• $160,000 and $180,000 for joint tax filers

You can't claim the credit if your MAGI is above those thresholds.

Medical and Dental Expenses Deduction

You may be able to deduct certain out-of-pocket expenses you paid for medical and dental care for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents (i.e., a qualifying child or a qualifying relative). As far as the IRS is concerned, medical expenses are the costs of "diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease."

The deduction applies only to expenses that exceed 7.5% of your income. So, if your AGI is $50,000, you can claim the deduction for medical expenses that exceed $3,750 ($50,000 × 7.5%).

Head of Household Status

In addition to the numerous tax credits and deductions, you may qualify for head of household status if you have a dependent. Taxpayers who file as heads of household have a higher standard deduction and a lower marginal tax rate than single filers, both of which can lower your taxes.

To file as head of household, all of the following statements must be true:

• You were unmarried on the last day of the year.
• You paid more than half the cost of keeping your home for the year.
• A qualifying person lived with you in the home for more than half the year (except for temporary absences). If the qualifying person is your parent, they don't need to live with you.
  

The Bottom Line

If you can claim a dependent on your tax return, numerous tax credits and deductions could help lower your tax bill or increase your refund. It's possible to save thousands of dollars at tax time if you claim all the tax breaks to which you're entitled.