Golden retriever helps calm vacationers at Newark Liberty Airport
At Newark Liberty International Airport, Golden Retrievers welcome vacationers with wagging tails during the busiest travel seasons.
A New York lawyer sued the Internal Revenue Service, hoping to claim his dog as a dependent on his taxes.
The lawsuit filed by Amanda Reynolds seeks to claim her 8-year-old golden retriever, Finnegan Mary Reynolds, as a nonhuman dependent under U.S. tax law. In a complaint reviewed by USA TODAY, Reynolds said her dog is “completely dependent on her” to survive.
Reynolds, who lives in New York City, filed the lawsuit on June 19 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Her attorney said she spends more than $5,000 a year on her dog. Finnegan’s care includes boarding, daycare, transportation, veterinary services, grooming, meals and housing, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit argued that Mr. Finnegan qualifies as a dependent under Section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code. To count as a dependent, the taxpayer must demonstrate that they share a residence with the individual and that the individual requires financial dependence and does not have independent income.
The IRS does not count animals as dependents. Instead, the federal government considers them property. Dependents are often children, certain relatives, and other people who meet the support, income, and residence requirements.
People with human dependents can typically claim one of the child tax credits, earned income tax credits, dependent care credits, or other benefits.
USA TODAY has reached out to the IRS for comment.
Some dogs qualify as service animals, and the IRS allows taxpayers to claim them as medical expenses.
But Reynolds argues in her lawsuit that “evolving understandings of the legal status of animals, combined with state and federal regulations for animals as regulated animals, justify recognizing dogs as associate citizens, entitled to limited civil recognition, including dependent status for tax purposes.”
Reynolds adopted the dog in 2016.
“No matter how you look at it, Ms. Finnegan is like a daughter and is definitely a ‘dependent child,'” the complaint said.
Reynolds’ complaint states that she filed the lawsuit “on behalf of herself, the taxpayer, and other similarly situated putative dog owners who have been denied any tax recognition of their dependence, even though the dog is functionally integrated into the household, even though their economic contribution to the maintenance of the dog meets or exceeds the definition of ‘dependent’ under 26 U.S.C. 152.”
Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Please contact mdelrey@usatoday.com.
