1) Cheryl is claimed as a dependent on her parents' tax return. She had a part-time job during 2012 and earned $4,900 during the year, which was her only income. What is her standard deduction?
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A)
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$950
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B)
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$4,900
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C)
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$5,200
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D)
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$5,950
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2) Amber supports four individuals: Erin, her stepdaughter, who lives with her; Amy, her cousin, who lives in another state; Britney, her friend, who lives legally in Amber's home all year long; and Charlie, her father, who lives in another state. Assume that the dependency requirements other than residence are all met. How many personal and dependency exemptions may Amber claim?
A) 2
B) 3
C) 4
D) 5
3) Tony supports the following individuals during the current year: Miranda, his former mother-in-law who lives in her own home and has no gross income; his cousin, Jeff, age 23, who is a full-time student, earns $7,000 during the year, and lives with Tony all year long; and Matt, age 22, who is Tony's brother, is a full-time student living on campus and earns $8,000 during the year. How many dependency exemptions may Tony claim?
4) David's father is retired and receives $14,000 per year in social security benefits. David's father saves $4,000 of the benefits and spends the remaining $10,000 for his support. How much support must David provide for his father to meet the dependent support requirement?
A) $10,000
B) $10,001
C) $14,000
D) $14,001
5) You may choose married filing jointly as your filing status if you are married and both you and your spouse agree to file a joint return. Which of the following facts would prevent you from being considered married for filing purposes?
A) You were married for several years, but your divorce became final in December.
B) You are married but living apart until some problems can be solved.
C) Your spouse died during the year but the executor of the estate has agreed to the filing of a joint return.
D) None of the above.
6) In 2009, Leo's wife died. Leo has two small children, ages 2 and 4, living at home whom he supports entirely. Leo does not remarry and is not claimed as a dependent on another's return during any of this period. In 2010, 2011, and 2012, Leo's most advantageous filing status is, respectively
A) single for all three years.
B) head of household for all three years.
C) surviving spouse, surviving spouse, head of household
D) surviving spouse, surviving spouse, single.
7) Sally, divorced in 2010, maintains her home in which she and her sixteen-year-old daughter resided for 2011 and 2012. The daughter is a qualified child. Sally signed the dependency exemption over to her ex-spouse. What is Sally's filing status for 2012 and how many exemptions may she claim?
A) single and one
B) surviving spouse and one
C) head of household and one
D) head of household and two
8) In October 2011, Joy and Paul separated and have not lived with each other since, but they are still married. Joy supports their children after the separation and pays the cost of maintaining their home. Joy's filing status in 2011 and 2012 is, respectively.
A) single for both years
B) head of household and single.
C) married filing separately for both years.
D) married filing separately and head of household.
9) Michelle, age 20, is a full-time college student with earned income from wages of $5,200 and interest income of $700. Michelle's parents provide more than half of Michelle's support. Michelle's taxable income is
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A)
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$0.
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B)
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$100.
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C)
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$400.
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D)
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$5,700.
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PROBLEM 2
1) For each of the following independent cases, indicate the total number of exemptions that may be claimed by the taxpayer in 2012.
a. Cassie is a single mother providing the sole support of her three children, who all live with her. Her 16 year-old daughter, Tammy, earned $15,200 modeling during the year and her two sons, R.J. and Will, ages 10 and 8, have no income.
b. Olivia, 35 years old, provided eighty percent of the support of her grandmother who lived in another state. Her grandmother's only income was from non-taxable social security of $6,500.
c. Vanessa and Matt Reardon are married and under 65 years of age. During 2012, they furnish more than half of the support of their 25 year-old son, Bill, who lives with them. Bill earns $2,000 from a part-time job, most of which he sets aside for future college expenses. Bill is not currently a student. Vanessa's father, Henry, who died on January 3, 2012, at age 80, had for many years qualified as their dependent.
d. Douglas and Marjorie are husband and wife and file a joint return. Both are under 65 years of age. They provide more than half of the support of their daughter, Ellen (age 23), who is a full-time medical student. Ellen receives a $3,400 taxable scholarship covering her room and board at college. They furnish all of the support of Henry (Douglas's grandfather), who is age 70 and lives in a nursing home. They also support Meg (age 69), who is a friend of the family and lives with them.
e. Blair, who is divorced, maintains a home in which she, her twin sons, and her baby daughter live all year. The children's father, Ross, provides over half their support. No special arrangements exist between Blair and Ross.
2) Indicate for each of the following the most favorable filing status for the 2011 tax year.
a. Kenny died on March 2, 2011. Marge, his wife, and Bart, their son, survive. Marge filed a joint return in 2011. Bart, age 18 in 2012, is a part-time college student and continues to live at home with his mother. He works part-time, earning $5,900. What is Marge's filing status in 2012?
b. Alan Spaulding is single and provides over 50% support of his niece Alicia who lives with him all year long. Alan maintains the household and claims Alicia as a dependent. Alicia makes $3,600 at a part-time job. She is a full-time student, age 18. What is Alan's filing status?
c. Lily, who was divorced on July 27, 2011, provides 100% of the support for her parents who live in a nursing home in Kansas and have no income. What is Lily's filing status?
d. Holly was abandoned by her husband Fletcher in September of the current year. She has not seen or communicated with him since then. What is Holly's filing status?
e. Rick, whose wife died in December 2011, filed a joint tax return for 2011. He did not remarry, but has continued to maintain his home in which his two dependent children live. What is Rick's filing status for 2012?