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Dependency Rules changed in 2006
When children graduate from high school and get jobs or go on to school, at some point they will no longer qualify as dependents. A child must meet the following conditions to be considered a dependent:
- the child must be under the age of nineteen or under age twenty-four and a full-time student for at least five months during the year;
- the child must be a U.S. citizen, a resident alien, or a resident of Canada or Mexico;
- the child must live with the parent for more than half the year (temporary absences such as college are ignored); and
- the child must not provide more than half of his or her own support.
Even though a parent provides a home for the child while in college, the financial aid and loan responsibility (but not scholarships) may enter into the determination of support provided by the child.
In the year the child graduates from high school or college, it is important to look at the earnings for the entire year to determine support. Even though the child has lived at home and been a full-time student for five months, his or her total yearly income could be high enough to have provided more than half of his or her own support.
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