Son Taking One Parent as Dependent (But Not the Other)?

If you are looking at Pub 4012 I assume you are either a VITA, TCE or AARP Taxaide user. As such, you would be using TaxSlayer software. Your first question asks if the son can claim his father as a dependent and file as HoH. The answer is Yes if the father is his Qualifying Relative and the son pays more than half of the household maintenance costs and the father does not file a joint return other than to request a refund of withheld and estimated taxes paid. Your second questions asks what if Mom and Dad file Married Separate returns. The answer is the same. He can still claim his father and file as HoH. Lastly, you say the mother's return as MFS gets rejected because she checked off the box indicating her husband could be taken as a dependent. Taxslayer does not ask that question. Taxslayer asks whether the taxpayer (it's Mom as it is her MFS return) can be claimed as a dependent. The box should not be checked as the son is not claiming his mother as a dependent.

You also said that you read on page C-1 that the son cannot take his father. C-1 does not say that. C-1 defines who is a qualifying relative and gives you the rule about not filing a joint return other than to get a refund of taxes paid. Lastly, yes the standard deduction on a joint return gets reduced when a spouse can be claimed by someone else.

Here is all I know: For an MFS return, for the taxpayer's spouse, Taxslayer software does show a box labeled "Spouse can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's return." On the taxpayer's (again, meaning the wife's) MFS return, the VITA site checked off this box. When checked off, another query appears asking "Yes" or "No" to "Taxpayer is claimed as a dependent on someone else's return. *"

Doing what I describe above, Taxslayer ultimately generates a 1040 form showing that 'someone can claim your spouse as a dependent.' Following the steps above, and when submitted, the return ended up being rejected within like an hour.

The VITA site did end up un-checking the box for the spouse (on the wife's return). The return was accepted.

I hope it's a fluke with the Taxslayer software. 

I do not need further input. Many thanks for giving your time to this.

An un-dated statement from Taxslayer on this subject:

"In general, someone else should not be claiming you or your spouse (if you are filing Married Filing Jointly) as a dependent unless your return is only a claim for a refund and there would be no tax liability for either you or your spouse if you filed separate returns."

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