I claim my daughter as a dependent, she is in college can she claim her own personal exemption.

A) No, under current tax law, individuals are not allowed to claim personal exemptions for themselves, their spouse, or any dependents. The personal exemption was eliminated as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017.

Instead of personal exemptions, the TCJA increased the standard deduction and created a new $500 nonrefundable credit for dependents who do not qualify for the Child Tax Credit. The standard deduction for the 2022 tax year is $12,950 for single filers and $25,900 for married filing jointly.

However, as a parent, you may still be able to claim your daughter as a dependent on your tax return if she meets the qualifying criteria for a dependent. To claim your daughter as a dependent, she must meet the following tests:

1. Relationship test: Your daughter must be your child, stepchild, foster child, sibling, step-sibling, or a descendant of any of these individuals.
2. Residency test: Your daughter must have lived with you for more than half the year. If your daughter is away at college, she is still considered to have lived with you if she lived away from home temporarily for education purposes.
3. Support test: You must have provided more than half of your daughter’s support during the year.
4. Age test: Your daughter must be under age 19 or a full-time student under age 24 at the end of the year, or she must be permanently and totally disabled.

If your daughter meets these tests, you can claim her as a dependent on your tax return, and she cannot claim a personal exemption for herself.

According the IRS; If you can claim an exemption for your daughter as a dependent on your income tax return, she cannot claim her own personal exemption on her income tax return.

• If an individual is filing his or her own tax return, and the individual can be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return, the individual cannot claim his or her own personal exemption.
• In this case, your daughter should check the box on her return indicating that someone else can claim her as a dependent.

Additional Information:

• Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information

Category: Filing Requirements, Status, Dependents, Exemptions 
Subcategory: Dependents & Exemptions