nepusa

To be a dependent, one should not have an annual income of more than $4000.

Let's say, if parents, have income of >$4000 from their native country, then they cannot be claimed as dependents by their adult son/daughter even the parents are living with them. In this situation, I think, adult son/daughter's income does not need to be included in the total income of the parent.

Another scenario-what if parents say that they pay their adult son/daughter for accommodation? That way, the son/daughter is not paying for at least half of their expense, which is one of the pre-requisite for someone to be called dependent.

Are you saying the parents should lie to the US government ? Why would we want immoral people to immigrate to the US ?

Are you saying the parents should lie to the US government ? Why would we want immoral people to immigrate to the US ?

Hey Buddy,

I am not saying parents should lie. I was asking hypothetical questions. I do not even have my parents in US and they do not even plan to migrate to US.

My friend and his parents won US DV(Diversity Visa) recently and asked me about health coverage for his parents. He is not sure if his parents too should come with him to US.

Regarding, my first scenario about parents having more than > $4000 income- Many immigrants, not necessarily everyone, have at least some income from their native country e.g. house rent, shares etc. If they actually have > $4000 annual income from their native country, will it be immoral to say that they do have >$4000 annual income? May be they can show proof too, e.g contract papers with the tenants.

Regarding the second scenario-I agree this sounds like a lie. I apologize. It is true that, ethically, it may sound wrong for parents to pay their adult children to live in their chilren's home. I was curious about the legal part. Is it wrong legally for parents to pay their children to live in children's house? What if the parents actually pay their children?

Let's assume immigrant parents are desperate to live with their children in US, also want their own health insurance coverage and do not want their children to pay hefty amount for their insurance. May be in such scenario, they can consider to pay their children( I mean actually pay children and get signed papers).

To be a dependent, one should not have an annual income of more than $4000.

Let's say, if parents, have income of >$4000 from their native country, then they cannot be claimed as dependents by their adult son/daughter even the parents are living with them. In this situation, I think, adult son/daughter's income does not need to be included in the total income of the parent.

Another scenario-what if parents say that they pay their adult son/daughter for accommodation? That way, the son/daughter is not paying for at least half of their expense, which is one of the pre-requisite for someone to be called dependent.

I was able to find this link, which makes obvious sense when you think about it:

"Can a person qualify for a premium tax credit on her own if she could be claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer's return but is not claimed?

No. If a person qualifies as a taxpayer’s dependent, the taxpayer is entitled to that person’s “personal exemption,” whether or not they choose to claim it. A personal exemption is a deduction from taxable income ($4,000 in 2015); reducing the amount of taxable income also reduces the tax one owes. Taxpayers are entitled to the personal exemptions of people who qualify as their dependents, but they are not required to claim dependents. Even if a taxpayer decides or agrees to not claim a dependent’s exemption, that doesn’t make the dependent eligible to claim his or her own exemption. Exemptions are not transferable. If an eligible taxpayer does not claim the exemption, it is lost.

These tax rules are important for the premium tax credit. For example, let’s look at Bob, who is caring for his uninsured mother, Marie. Bob provides more than half of Marie’s support and Marie has no income. Marie qualifies as Bob’s dependent. He wants to enroll Marie in a marketplace plan, but Bob’s income is too high to qualify for marketplace subsidies. Even if Bob chooses not to claim Marie as a dependent on his tax return, Marie is not eligible to claim her own personal exemption on a separate tax return. Because Marie qualifies as Bob’s dependent—whether or not he claims her on his tax return—she cannot qualify for PTC on her own. If Marie applies for health coverage on her own, and at tax time she attempts to file a separate tax return, she will be found ineligible for PTCs and any advance payments of the PTC she received during the year will need to be repaid, up to the cap. If instead, Bob claims Marie as a dependent at tax time, any APTC Marie received during the year will need to be reconciled on Bob’s tax return based on his income."

http://www.healthreformbeyondthebasics.org/question-of-the-day/

Huh? No, I didn't claim my parents as dependents on my taxes. Yes, they filed a separate, completely empty (no income, no taxes, no deductions) tax return (married filing jointly) last year, and plan to do the same this year as well.

I think you are conflating two separate things. Being your parents' GC sponsor does not "require" you to claim them as dependents on your taxes. You are allowed to claim them as dependents, but you may choose not to do so (which is what I did.)

The trade-off is that you give up the standard deductions you'd otherwise get for dependents (and pay higher taxes as a result,) in return for getting a subsidy on their health insurance premiums. Make sense?

Hi Missads,

Hopefully, what you wrote is true that the sponsoring child's income does not need to be included while determining the total income for the immigrant parents.

However after the parents are in the US for 5 years, assuming that they are =/> 65 years of age, they will be eligible for Medicare.

To enroll in Medicare, Immigrants who have not worked in the US for 10 years, will have to pay monthly premiums for Medicare A as well as Medicare B, which again would be expensive.

Do you know if immigrant parents can continue with ACA or if they have to enroll in Medicare after 5 year stay in US?

Thanks