Questions for the Tax Lady: March 1st, 2010

Check out the following new Questions for the Tax Lady answers and feel free to ask me questions through one of the links below. You can send me an email, direct message or @ reply, and I will do my best to get an answer for you!

Question #1: If my college student wants to claim himself as a dependent when he files his return can I still claim his as a dependent on my return?

No. If you want to claim your son as a dependent and take an exemption for him on your return then he cannot claim a personal exemption for himself on his IRS tax return. Instead, he will need to check the box on his return indicating that someone else claimed him as a dependent.

Question #2: What should I do if I realize I made a mistake on my tax return that I have already e-filed?

If you make a mistake on your return then you will most likely need to file an amended return with the IRS. You should use IRS Form 1040X, and should expect 8 to 12 weeks for the IRS to process the amended return. For more information, check out this page on IRS.gov.