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armcginley
Jan 9, 2008, 12:09 PM
My roommate was unemployed for all of 2006. He is totally financially dependent on me for his support & welfare. May I claim Head of Household & declare him as a dependent on my tax retruns?

twinkiedooter
Jan 9, 2008, 12:29 PM
Is your roommate a US citizen?

armcginley
Jan 9, 2008, 12:58 PM
Yes... US citizen

danielnoahsmommy
Jan 9, 2008, 01:00 PM
I am not 100% sure on this. He is not a relative, child, or medicaly incapable. I don't think you can do head of household unless there is a child. Contact a accountant and ask you q

AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 9, 2008, 01:46 PM
Armcginley:

You CANNOT claim Head of Household status, because he is NOT a relative, but rather just a roommate.

You CAN claim him as a dependent while filing in SINGLE status if he lived with you ALL year and you provided more than half of his total support.

armcginley
Jan 9, 2008, 01:58 PM
Yes... thanks for confirmation & jogging my memory. I will file as "single" & claim roommate as a dependent as I have supported him totally in 2007.

AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 9, 2008, 02:11 PM
Glad to help!

twinkiedooter
Jan 9, 2008, 02:21 PM
He must be a US citizen for you to be able to claim him as a dependent. Do not use the Head of Household status though. You should be okay with this if you file "single"

AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 9, 2008, 02:54 PM
Agreed!

MukatA
Jan 10, 2008, 01:58 AM
To claim a dependent (under Qualifying Relative) it is not necessary that the person is related to you but he/she must be the U.S. citizen or resident (even for tax purpose).

For Head of Household, the qualifying person must be your dependent and must be your relative:
Qualifying Person.
1. Qualifying child who lived with you more than half the year.
2. A qualifying relative who is your mother or father.
3. A qualifying relative who lived with you for more than half the year and you can claim as exemption for him or her.

AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 10, 2008, 11:06 AM
Noted!

The Texas Tax Expert
Jan 12, 2008, 03:26 PM
Hang on a second. Does the roommate have any income, including unemployment benefits? If so, it is unlikely they are going to pass the test to be a dependent.

AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 12, 2008, 05:35 PM
That is true; unemployment IS taxable income.