Most college students are still dependents for tax purposes.
A college student may be claimed on your annual tax return if she is still considered to be your dependent. Even if she does not live with you for most of the year because she is away at college, you can claim her on your tax return. Interest on your child's student loan is also a deductible expense on your tax return.
Provide More than Half of Child's Living Expenses
To claim your college-attending child on your federal tax return, you must have provided more than half your child's living expenses for the year. If your child is a full-time student and he received a scholarship for college, those funds do not qualify as living expenses and you are not disqualified from claiming your child as a dependent based on the scholarship money. However, a student loan in the child's name does count as income toward living expenses. As long as the parents provide more than half the chiId's financial support, a child is claimed as a dependent on a tax return.
Age of Child
A child in college may be claimed as a dependent on her parent's tax return as long as she is under the age of 19, even if she is only enrolled part time. If your child is a full-time student and is enrolled in a certified university, you can claim her on your tax return until she reaches age 24. Graduate students over the age of 24 are no longer considered dependents and can not be claimed on a parent's tax return.
Child's Residency
You can claim a child in college on your tax return if your child has lived with you for more than half the year. If your child lives on campus full time, his residency at the university is considered a temporary absence from home. According to Internal Revenue Service guidelines, living away from home for educational purposes is considered a temporary absence. As a result, even if your child lives at college for most of the year, he still qualifies as a dependent for tax purposes.
Not Claimed as a Dependent on Another Return
You can claim your collegiate child as a dependent on your tax return only if she is not claimed as a dependent on any other return. In the case of divorce, only the primary custodial parent is permitted to claim the child on an annual tax return. If the parents have shared custody, they must agree on who will be claiming the child as a dependent on their tax return. If the child is filing her own single-status tax return, she cannot be claimed as a dependent on your return.
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