Tax question?

Tax question?
Who technically gets to claim a child if both parents are split up??? My child lives with me and always has but for the past three or four years both me and her father have been claiming her. He always beat me to the punch and I guess he thinks that mean he gets to claim her...but since she lives with me and these last few years I have paid more for her according to our child support worksheet so, I also did. I ask this question because all this year (according to child support enforcement) he has paid more child support because he makes more money. They took both of our incomes and by that determined how much our child costs. Then they split it up so he pays like 58% of her so called cost and I pay 42%. Who shall be allowed to claim her this year??? I have to add, I was never married and I spoke to two people at the IRS who one said they go by who the child lives with and the other said they go by who has paid more for the child. I notified the IRS of the previous years and they just said wait for your letter...still no letter from them yet. We also don't have a court order stating anyhting about taxes.


Answers:

kurticus1024:  she LIVES with you. You claim her If they catch it, the will have he explaining to do , not you. probably they won't catch it, they tend to go after people who make like a million instead I think
2006-12-15 11:06:15
mayihelpyou:  This should have been decided before now. You have to decide who gets to claim the child and let the court set it in writing. That way no one gets to beat the other one to the punch. By law, whomever the child physically lives with gets to claim the child unless said so in the divorce papers, or custody decision. Your lawyer should have told you this.
2006-12-15 11:09:32
db:  I'm surprised it wasn't in your divorce decree. My ex got to claim our daughter, not fair, he hardly has her. Check with a tax advisor.
2006-12-15 11:09:37
Chosen Answer
camys_daddy:  The custodial parent gets to unless the divorce decree says otherwise. I get to claim my daughter in the odd numbered tax years. So my ex get's to claim her this year, and I the next.
2006-12-15 11:21:54
Megan O:  Whomever the child primarily lives with is supposed to claim her. Her father is collecting money from the govt for a child that you care for. This is illegal and needs to be brought to someones attention!! Child support has NOTHING to do with it, it is where the child resides MOST of the year because that person pays the housing and utilities and food and clothing and education.
2006-12-15 11:28:59