I live at my mother's home and she gives me an allowance to take care of all of my expenses. I am a single woman, have no outside job, or income, and take care of all of my mom's needs (appointments, food preparation, grocery shopping, etc.) Am I considered a "caregiver" in this situation and need to report the money she gives me as taxable income?
You can get some good information from a Forum like this, but it helps to see a professional when you need professional advice where you cannot afford to go wrong.
I wonder if the pay your Mom is paying you could be used for a caregiver to come in and take care of her.
That way you can go to work outside of the house depending on your work history. If you came from past employment where you had received a good salary, paid vacation days, paid sick days, 401(k) benefits, stock options [depending on the company], promotions, etc. Just something to think about. It is expensive getting older.
Anyway, if it were me I'd ring up the tax people and ask.
a) They won’t know, and b) their stock answer will be ‘yes, it’s taxable to you’.
GIFT is the word.
And don’t get attys involved. They need to make a living and your money is as good as any bodies.
They need a care agreement that is legal in Medicaid's eyes and will meet their scrutiny. The time to learn about the gifting rules is now, not when Medicaid has denied benefits because of giving daughter money for her own bills. What if mom has a stroke and needs a nursing home tomorrow. If mom does not have assets to pay those costs out of pocket for five years then she will be penalized an amount equal to the gifted amount. You do not need the extra stress of questions of her qualifying when the care is needed.
It would be nice if this was none of the government's business, but the government and me and everyone on this site will be the one's paying for mom's care. It is our business, why should I be taxed to pay for mom's care when she gave away her assets?
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