Does You Child Have To File A Tax Return?

You may be claiming your child as a dependent on your federal tax return, but if that child had a part-time job, or an investment account, they may be required to file a tax return of their own.

This depends on the amount of the dependent’s earned income, unearned income, and gross income. Your child must file a return if any of the following apply:

• Their unearned income was more than $950.
• Their earned income was more than $5,800.
• Their gross income was more than the larger of $950 or your earned income plus $300

Earned income is the money you receive from a job or operating a business. Unearned income is what you receive from investments. 

Parental responsibilities

You, as a parent, have some responsibilities when it comes to your children's taxes. If they cannot file it for any reason, such as their age, a parent or guardian must file it for the child. If the child can not yet write their name, the parent should sign their name, with the notation “By (name) for minor child.

Amounts a child earns by performing services are his or her gross income. This is true even if under local law the child’s parents have the right to the earnings and may actually have received them.

If the child does not pay the tax on the income, the parent is liable for the tax.