IDOC-non-tax filer

Paying for College
1

<p>Hi, </p>

<p>My S has 1100$ on his bank account because he got a few scholarships (around 300$) in seventh grade and has money received from various relatives and myself for holidays/birthdays over the years. I didn't think that he needed to file a tax-return because of this however, on IDOC it says if the unearned income is over 950$ he should have filed a return. Should I file a tax return immediately or not? We didn't not deposit any money for the past year however, so the increase in his account was only the interest. </p>

<p>Thank you!</p>

<p>(Also, if I don't have to file a return for him, I would have to send supporting documentation for his income. Would his bank statement suffice?)</p>

2

<p>Hi - you have to discern between income and assets. Your son has over $950 in assets - I see nothing that you wrote that says he had over $950 in unearned income in 2011. Unearned income is income that comes from sources other than employment - interest income, dividend income, capital gains and so forth. If he does not have income beyond a few dollars in interest income earned on his bank account - he does not need to file a tax return. Use the non-filer form from the IDOC site.</p>