If you are caring for your mother or father
To be allowed to claim your parent as a dependent, your parent’s earned income cannot be more than$3,900 for the 2013 tax year. This means that if your parent earns more than $3,900, you aren’t eligible to claim them as a dependent. Non-taxable income, such as Social Security, does not count toward this amount. If you cannot claim your parent as a dependent because he or she filed a joint tax return or has a gross income above $3,950 (in 2014) but you have been paying your parent's medical expenses, you may be able to deduct those expenses from your taxes. 1 Even if you do not pay more than half your parent's total support for the year, you may still be able to claim your parent as a dependent if you pay more than 10 percent of your parent's support for the year, and, with others, collectively contribute to more than half of your parent's support. The parent you want to claim as a dependent on your tax return must have a social security number (SSN) or an individua tax identification number (ITIN). Either of these numbers will satisfy the identification requirement for the IRS. If you're supporting an elderly parent, you may qualify to claim that parent as a dependent on your tax return. For tax year 2007, claiming an additional personal exemption would reduce your taxable income by $3,400. But to claim this tax break, you must pass the following tests: • Income. If you are caring for your mother or father, you may be able to claim your parent as a dependent on your income taxes. This would allow you to get an exemption ($3,950 for tax year 2014) for him or her. There are five tests to determine whether you can claim a parent as a dependent: Support Means Support. To meet the support requirements necessary to claim your parent as a dependent on your tax return, you must cover more than half of your parent’s support costs – meaning 51% or more of their support costs must be covered by you.
http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/tax-deductions-and-credits-2/family/can-you-claim-a-parent-as-a-dependent-13842/ http://www.elderlawanswers.com/claiming-a-parent-as-a-dependent-3657 http://www.elderlawanswers.com/claiming-a-parent-as-a-dependent-3657 http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/tax-deductions-and-credits-2/family/can-you-claim-a-parent-as-a-dependent-13842/ http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/perfi/columnist/block/2007-06-25-elder-parent-dependent_N.htm http://www.elderlawanswers.com/claiming-a-parent-as-a-dependent-3657 http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/tax-deductions-and-credits-2/family/can-you-claim-a-parent-as-a-dependent-13842/
when to claim parent as dependent