What is a multiple support agreement?

The problem it solves

To claim someone as a qualifying relative you must generally provide more than half of their total support. Families often share the cost of an aging parent. If you, your brother and your sister each pay a third, no one passes. The publication provides a way out: two or more people, each of whom would be able to claim the person but for the support test, who together provide more than half of the person's support, can agree that one of them claims the dependent.

The rules

Only a person who individually provides more than 10% of the support can claim the dependent, and only one person can claim in a year. Each of the others must sign a statement agreeing not to claim the person as a dependent for that year. The claimant must keep those signed statements. A multiple support declaration identifying each of the others who agreed not to claim the person must be attached to the claimant's return; Form 2120 is the form for this. The arrangement works for someone related to you or someone who lived with you all year as a member of your household.

The people in the agreement must each be able to claim the person but for the support test. That is why support from unrelated outsiders, the state, or someone with no right to claim does not help the group reach the more-than-half line, as one of the publication's examples shows.

The publication's three examples, explained

Example 1: you and three siblings provide all support of a parent: you 45%, Sam 35%, Bobbi and Dani 10% each. Either you or Sam can claim the parent, and the one who does not signs a statement. Bobbi and Dani gave exactly 10%, not more than 10%, so neither can claim. Example 2: you and a sibling give 20% each and two unrelated persons give 30% each. Because more than half comes from persons who cannot claim the parent, no one qualifies. Example 3: a parent living with you gets 25% from social security, 40% from you, 24% from a relative and 11% from a friend. Either you or the relative can claim the parent if the other signs a statement. Social security counts as the parent's own support, so it does not count towards the group.

Worked example with the checker

Suppose a parent is supported 30% by you, 28% by your brother, 12% by your sister, and 30% by the parent's own savings and nontaxable pension, spent on support. Mark you, your brother and your sister as persons who could claim (rows 1 to 3) and leave the parent's own funds out. The eligible group provides 70%, more than half, so a multiple support agreement works. You and your brother each exceed 10%, as does your sister at 12%, so any of you could be the one claiming. Only one of you claims; the other two sign statements. Change your sister to 10% and she can no longer be the claimant, though she can still sign.

Limits and side effects

A parent claimed only through a multiple support agreement does not qualify you for head of household: Table 4 says a person you can claim only because of a multiple support agreement is not a qualifying person. The special support test for children of divorced or separated parents does not apply to a child whose support is determined under a multiple support agreement. And the usual dependent tests still apply to the person being claimed: not a qualifying child of anyone, gross income under $5,200, and the citizen or resident test. Find those on the dependent gross income limit page.

Practical tips

Treat the statements as records to keep, since the claimant keeps them and the IRS can ask for them. Write down each person's contribution and the date, and rotate the claim in later years if it suits the family, because the agreement is for a single year and each year needs its own signed statement. The person claiming should check which relative gets the most from the claim before deciding, for example when one relative has a higher tax bracket or qualifies for credits tied to the dependent; for that decision, the publication leaves the choice to the family.

Sources

• IRS Publication 501, Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information (2025): Multiple Support Agreement (Examples 1 to 3); Support Test (To Be a Qualifying Relative); Table 4, footnote 5; Support Test for Children of Divorced or Separated Parents (Multiple support agreement). Read November 2, 2026.

Edition read: Publication 501 (2025), for use in preparing 2025 returns. Dollar limits and dates in this publication are for 2025; check the current publication and form instructions for your tax year. This page summarizes the publication and does not replace it.