Actually, after reading the documentation more closely, I want to retract my previous statement. I think it's actually possible that you might be able to qualify to claim your siblings as dependents.
This publication goes over the rules for claiming a person as a dependent. Dependents can either be a "qualifying child" or a "qualifying relative." Let's focus on the rules for a qualifying child, because I think these are the ones that might actually apply to you.
Overall rules for being able to claim dependents at all:* You cannot claim any dependents if you, or your spouse if filing jointly, could be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer.
As long as you're no longer a student, you're too old to be your parents' qualifying child. If you are a student, you would have to prove you provide half of your own support to be ineligible to be your parents' qualifying child. You can't be a qualifying relative because your income is over $3,900. I think you're pretty safe on this one.
* You cannot claim a married person who files a joint return as a dependent unless that joint return is filed only to claim a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid.
I assume from your siblings' ages that they aren't married yet. You're probably safe here too.
* You cannot claim a person as a dependent unless that person is a U.S. citizen, U.S. resident alien, U.S. national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico.
Are your siblings US citizens or permanent residents? If yes, then proceed.
* You cannot claim a person as a dependent unless that person is your qualifying child or qualifying relative.
Your siblings can't be your qualifying relative because they qualify as the qualifying child of another taxpayer (namely, your parents). Let's focus instead on the qualifying child requirements.
Tests To Be a Qualifying Child1. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
Check.
2. The child must be (a) under age 19 at the end of the year and younger than you (or your spouse if filing jointly), (b) under age 24 at the end of the year, a student, and younger than you (or your spouse if filing jointly), or (c) any age if permanently and totally disabled.
Check.
3. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year.
Did you live at home with your siblings for more than half of the year? If so, check.
4. The child must not have provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
Check (assuming your siblings actually don't pay for half of their living expenses). Note that it doesn't say
you have to provide the majority of the support. This is where I was mistaken before.
5. The child is not filing a joint return for the year (unless that joint return is filed only to claim a refund of withheld income tax or estimated tax paid).
Check (again, assuming they aren't married).
So they actually do meet the tests to be your qualifying child. Does this mean you can claim them as dependents? Read on...
Another wrinkle:
If the child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person, only one person can actually treat the child as a qualifying child. See the Special Rule for Qualifying Child of More Than One Person described later to find out which person is the person entitled to claim the child as a qualifying child.
...
Sometimes, a child meets the relationship, age, residency, support, and joint return tests to be a qualifying child of more than one person. Although the child is a qualifying child of each of these persons, only one person can actually treat the child as a qualifying child to take all of the following tax benefits (provided the person is eligible for each benefit).
- The exemption for the child.
- The child tax credit.
- Head of household filing status.
- The credit for child and dependent care expenses.
- The exclusion from income for dependent care benefits.
- The earned income credit.
The other person cannot take any of these benefits based on this qualifying child. In other words, you and the other person cannot agree to divide these tax benefits between you. The other person cannot take any of these benefits for a child unless he or she has a different qualifying child.
Tiebreaker rules. To determine which person can treat the child as a qualifying child to claim these six tax benefits, the following tiebreaker rules apply.
- If only one of the persons is the child's parent, the child is treated as the qualifying child of the parent.
- If the parents file a joint return together and can claim the child as a qualifying child, the child is treated as the qualifying child of the parents.
- If the parents do not file a joint return together but both parents claim the child as a qualifying child, the IRS will treat the child as the qualifying child of the parent with whom the child lived for the longer period of time during the year. If the child lived with each parent for the same amount of time, the IRS will treat the child as the qualifying child of the parent who had the higher adjusted gross income (AGI) for the year.
- If no parent can claim the child as a qualifying child, the child is treated as the qualifying child of the person who had the highest AGI for the year.
- If a parent can claim the child as a qualifying child but no parent does so claim the child, the child is treated as the qualifying child of the person who had the highest AGI for the year, but only if that person's AGI is higher than the highest AGI of any of the child's parents who can claim the child. If the child's parents file a joint return with each other, this rule can be applied by dividing the parents' combined AGI equally between the parents. See Example 6.
Subject to these tiebreaker rules, you and the other person may be able to choose which of you claims the child as a qualifying child.
The way I read these rules is that your parents have first crack at claiming each of your siblings as a qualifying child. If they do so for the purpose of claiming
any of the listed tax benefits, you will be able to claim
none of the tax benefits.
However, if your parents choose not to claim the dependent exemption, the child tax credit, head of household filing status, credit for child and dependent care expenses, exclusion from income for dependent care benefits, and the earned income credit,
and your AGI is higher than theirs, you may actually be able to claim all of those things instead. That could be a pretty big boost to your tax refund.