2009 Dependent Income Limit

http://www.irs.gov/

You read me so well, Mim.  It's awfully early to be getting the basic questions and I fear it will only get worse.

Good Response  Mimbreno

Tilt, someone just gave you a negative which I negated by giving it back. What some folks do not seem to get is that asking basic questions on this forum is not a substitute for real research. I think you only get good as a tax preparer once you have learned how to research and you can build on that knowledge. I know that whenever I do research I always come across some other unrelated (to my immediate question) bit of information that ends up being useful at a later time. I often find answers these days with a google search but of course the information you get from a google can be garbally goop so beware of the source. I know we have had some great discussions about some tax concepts on this forum but answering the really basic stuff has never led to one of them and we have lost some good participants because of the barrage of those basic questions.

Actually, since his question was not "what is the dependency exemption for 2009," but rather "how much can one earn..." he may not be an experienced preparer, and therefore his question was not as "naive" as we might have assumed?

Had it been the former question, may I suggest that we refuse to answer such questions? Teach a man to fish...

The maximum is always the amount allowed for a personal exemption in that tax year.

I agree with you Archie. SHDL had done some research or at least is aware of some basics. Just might not have hit publication 17 where it is all in one spot.

I sure have Archie on the brain, Once again I meant AM, not Archie.

Hmmm, never saw Archie, but MJ & AM are both here.  Thank you, Mim, for the boost.  I strongly suspect that SHDL did no like my response.

Archie has been getting credit for non responses lately.  I think it's because AM looks similar to how Archie used to look.

Funny how Mimbreno never got Archie and AM confused before when AM was going with his nude Atomic Man look.

True.  I don't think Archie ever did the nude look.

"The maximum is always the amount allowed for a personal exemption in that tax year"

Charlotte, you know this, and I know this, and the rest of the gang knows this, but do you really think a TT'er or a TP person knows this? This is why I do not think SHDL is a professional, tax preparer, anyway.

Oh, and re: the nude comments, just remember that I am home at 10:36 PM, alone in my den, on my PC, and everyone else in the house is asleep. I leave the rest to your imagination. (especially you, super OH)

AM - But you're on a tax forum.  These taxes must really get you excited!  Anyways, out of all of your characters I preferred the nude Atomic Man the best.

Just out of curiousity - What is an "Advanced Certified ProAdvisor"?  That is what SHDL is.

Forget the question - I just looked it up and saw it has to do with QuickBooks.

Actually, T-OH, when you compare the title of ACPA to the quality of the tax questions asked by some of the ACPA's, I can tell that they are not tax professionals.

I noticed that also.  When I first started getting on the forum I thought the "ProAdvisor" designation had to do with being some type of Pro on ProSeries.  Then when I saw alot of the questions they were asking I thought I must be some type of Super Pro and since I couldn't get the title I just went with the unfiorm instead.

You wear the uniform so well.  AM's uniform was good too.  The two of you could make quite a pair.

Thanks Tilt : )  I think AM's uniform was a bit easier to put on than mine though.

BTW, have you noticed, as is so often the case, that the OP never comes back to look at what's posted or acknowledge any advice give? It kind of makes you wonder why we bother.
 

WE bother because some other poor lost soul may wander through here and get informed by accident......

So, I'll answer the trickier part of the question. The dependent's GROSS income is used for the test. If the dependent runs a small business, or is trying to start a big one, then the meaning of Gross is:  for a service business - the total Gross take before all expenses. For a business selling inventory - the Gross is total income for the business less COGS. What goes into the COGS bucket will take either better research on the part of the questioner, or the professional help they would be wise to pay for.