It is a question many parents do not think about until April, but sometimes the answer is not what they expect.
For working teens, the federal filing threshold for 2026 is $16,100 in earned income (wages from a job). If your teen earned less than that, they are not required to file. However, if their employer withheld federal taxes from their paychecks and their income was below the threshold, they should file anyway. Filing is the only way to get that money back, and most working teens qualify for a full refund.
For self-employment income likebabysitting, lawn mowing, tutoring the threshold drops to just $400. Teens earning more than that from informal work are required to file, even if it seems like a small amount.
For college students, parents can generally continue claiming them as dependents until age 24, as long as the student is enrolled full-time and the parents provide more than half of their financial support. Scholarships and grants do not count as the student providing their own support.
One decision worth thinking through: whoever claims the student as a dependent is also the one who claims the American Opportunity Tax Credit, a valuable education credit worth up to $2,500. See the sidebar for details.
The good news for both teens and students: IRS Free File is available at IRS.gov for anyone earning under $89,000, making filing simple and free. According to Kiplinger, most student returns are straightforward enough to complete in under an hour.
