income taxes/step kids

ablessin · Jan 24, 2006

What is the name of your state?new york

I have a question about income taxes. My husband and I are not filing a joint tax return. He told me to claim his 2 kids on my return this year.
I am wondering if I can safely do this, or will the IRS look at my age, his oldest son's age and say "no way". I am 14 years older than his oldest - so it's fairly safe to assume that I am not his mom (although I know 14 year old kids have babies!!)

We are filing married filing separate. Um, so I told him I would look into this... can I claim them? He told me when they moved back to NY from out of state and they lived with his parents that his father claimed the kids as dependants that year and that worked out.
I've never had this sort of situation in the past so I am just curious how claiming step children works.

Thank you

LdiJ · Jan 24, 2006

ablessin said:
What is the name of your state?new york

I have a question about income taxes. My husband and I are not filing a joint tax return. He told me to claim his 2 kids on my return this year.
I am wondering if I can safely do this, or will the IRS look at my age, his oldest son's age and say "no way". I am 14 years older than his oldest - so it's fairly safe to assume that I am not his mom (although I know 14 year old kids have babies!!)

We are filing married filing separate. Um, so I told him I would look into this... can I claim them? He told me when they moved back to NY from out of state and they lived with his parents that his father claimed the kids as dependants that year and that worked out.
I've never had this sort of situation in the past so I am just curious how claiming step children works.

Thank you

Yes, you can claim them, but married filing separate loses you many credits and other bennies....therefore you might consider telling us why you plan on filing separately....because you may be making a bad choice.

ablessin · Jan 24, 2006

I can tell you why.
I almost did to start with byt was not sure if it mattered.

He has some back tax issues that he needs to get worked out (probably with an accountant) I think he had 3 years that he didn't file - which I think he will be ok, because he has the kids so I don't know if he owes a lot.

So, If we filed jointly then won't the IRS keep the refund due? And I certainly am not letting them keep the refund that I know would be due to me, even without claiming kids I get a refund.

LdiJ · Jan 24, 2006

ablessin said:
I can tell you why.
I almost did to start with byt was not sure if it mattered.

He has some back tax issues that he needs to get worked out (probably with an accountant) I think he had 3 years that he didn't file - which I think he will be ok, because he has the kids so I don't know if he owes a lot.

So, If we filed jointly then won't the IRS keep the refund due? And I certainly am not letting them keep the refund that I know would be due to me, even without claiming kids I get a refund.

Then take him and his records to a professional. Prepare the returns for the years he missed. Find out what the status is. If he is due refunds, then you can safely file your 2005 return together.

If he owes, but he can pay what he owes, then have him file those returns, wait a month or so, and then file your 2005 return together.

If he owes alot....then consider other alternatives.

ablessin · Jan 25, 2006

well, the problem is that he is in New Orleans on huricaine clean up - so we can not take his back tax stuff to an accountant right now.

That is partly why he thought I can just file mine now - to get mine in and get my refund going.

LdiJ · Jan 25, 2006

ablessin said:
well, the problem is that he is in New Orleans on huricaine clean up - so we can not take his back tax stuff to an accountant right now.

That is partly why he thought I can just file mine now - to get mine in and get my refund going.

If you have his information, and his permission, there is no reason why you couldn't take it to a tax preparer yourself. You would be doing joint returns.

Seriously, you will most unlikely come out ahead if you file together. Filing separately is generally not in your best interest.

abezon · Jan 25, 2006

I agree with LdiJ; MFS is almost always worse than filing jointly & including an injured spouse claim. However, if it's just not feasible, you can *both* file MFS now & amend later.

ablessin · Jan 26, 2006

Thanks to both of you for the advice and input.

I am sure he would give me the go ahead to take his stuff in. I think his goal though was to hold out just one more year until his child support payment is modified.
We're thinking "if" he does owe, we would like to be in a position to be able to start making payments. If he goes now and owes, we don't know where the money will come from to repay uncle sam.

So, here poses another question, then. I was told by my divorce lawyer a few years ago something along the lines of having a choice - that year only- of filing status because we separated first... I don;t recall his exact wording - BUT I wonder - we were married 12/30/05, so could I file single for 2005 since the majority of the year I was indeed single?
Does the IRS check your previous year filing information when they are processing your file? I usually do e-file if that matters.

Thanks

LdiJ · Jan 26, 2006

ablessin said:
Thanks to both of you for the advice and input.

I am sure he would give me the go ahead to take his stuff in. I think his goal though was to hold out just one more year until his child support payment is modified.
We're thinking "if" he does owe, we would like to be in a position to be able to start making payments. If he goes now and owes, we don't know where the money will come from to repay uncle sam.

So, here poses another question, then. I was told by my divorce lawyer a few years ago something along the lines of having a choice - that year only- of filing status because we separated first... I don;t recall his exact wording - BUT I wonder - we were married 12/30/05, so could I file single for 2005 since the majority of the year I was indeed single?
Does the IRS check your previous year filing information when they are processing your file? I usually do e-file if that matters.

Thanks

This is crazy....you stated that "he has the kids" so I am assuming that he has custody. Therefore the odds of him owing isn't high, and he may have significant refunds. If he hasn't filed for three years then he is risking losing the refunds for one of those year's, at least.

Right now he can file for 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005, and still get refunds for all of those years (if he has refunds coming). As of April 15th, it will be too late to receive a refund for 2002.

At a minimum you need to follow my advice and take his paperwork to a tax preparer and find out whether or not he owes or has a refund coming. THEN decide what to do. Messing around with his taxes in order to have some sort of advantage in a child support calculation is worse than foolish.

ablessin · Jan 27, 2006

Well, he thought that if he took them to a preparer and did indeed owe, payment would be expected right away.
Right now, with the CS he pays, that is just not possible. He is not trying to get some sort of CS advantage - his CS ordered is rediculous high. His ex all Spring was getting more than 1/2 his bring home pay. His work and pay fluctuates weekly, and it is pretty hard to budget when his pay can vary by $200 from one week to the next. I know the CS is figured on yearly salary, and all the ins and outs. It just weekly and monthly can be trying.
He has rights to claim the kids per his divorce decree. He does not have full time physical custody. It is joint, however.

Knowing that I can take the w2's to a tax preparer for him while he is away for work, though is very helpful.
In 2002 and 2003 his ex wife claimed them, so he may not be getting a refund those years. I doubt that he owes too, and I told him that - because he has the zero exemptions all year, so he is taxed at a single rate.

I think he is just quite nervous to move forward, and I can see where he is coming from. When you're strapped monthly to begin with it is scary to think you may have to come up with additional funds.
He wants to take care of this, and get all back years settled up -we just wondered about the claiming the kids piece.

And can I file single for 2005 since I was single 363 days of the year?

LdiJ · Jan 27, 2006

ablessin said:
Well, he thought that if he took them to a preparer and did indeed owe, payment would be expected right away.
Right now, with the CS he pays, that is just not possible. He is not trying to get some sort of CS advantage - his CS ordered is rediculous high. His ex all Spring was getting more than 1/2 his bring home pay. His work and pay fluctuates weekly, and it is pretty hard to budget when his pay can vary by $200 from one week to the next. I know the CS is figured on yearly salary, and all the ins and outs. It just weekly and monthly can be trying.
He has rights to claim the kids per his divorce decree. He does not have full time physical custody. It is joint, however.

Knowing that I can take the w2's to a tax preparer for him while he is away for work, though is very helpful.
In 2002 and 2003 his ex wife claimed them, so he may not be getting a refund those years. I doubt that he owes too, and I told him that - because he has the zero exemptions all year, so he is taxed at a single rate.

I think he is just quite nervous to move forward, and I can see where he is coming from. When you're strapped monthly to begin with it is scary to think you may have to come up with additional funds.
He wants to take care of this, and get all back years settled up -we just wondered about the claiming the kids piece.

And can I file single for 2005 since I was single 363 days of the year?

Just because you have the preparer do the returns, doesn't mean that they have to be filed. It just means that you will know exactly where he stands, before its too late to get a refund.

abezon · Jan 27, 2006

Keep in mind that if he misses the 4/15 cutoff, he loses any refund he has coming for 2002. Even if the gov't takes the entire refund, that $$ will at least pay down his debt. If he isn't going to see the money either way, at least get credit for it against the CS payments.

Also, I doubt the court will reduce/forgive his back support. That's an entirely different matter from reducing his current support obligation.

If for some reason he owes taxes, it's always better to file on time or ASAP after the due date even if you can't pay a dime. Filing stops the late filing penalties. Then the IRS just imposes interest on the debt instead of interst & penalties.

The only day that matters for marital status is 12/31. If you were married on 12/31, you can't file single.

If his decree gives him the right to claim the kids whether or not his support is paid up, he should claim the kids on all the old returns & include a copy of the decree. The IRS should read the decree & allow the exemptions, then bill his ex if she claimed the kids illegally.

Also, if he can prove the kids were with him more, he was the custodial parent & can file head of household & maybe claim EIC.

ablessin · Jan 28, 2006

abezon said:
Keep in mind that if he misses the 4/15 cutoff, he loses any refund he has coming for 2002. Even if the gov't takes the entire refund, that $$ will at least pay down his debt. If he isn't going to see the money either way, at least get credit for it against the CS payments.

Also, I doubt the court will reduce/forgive his back support. That's an entirely different matter from reducing his current support obligation.

If for some reason he owes taxes, it's always better to file on time or ASAP after the due date even if you can't pay a dime. Filing stops the late filing penalties. Then the IRS just imposes interest on the debt instead of interst & penalties.

The only day that matters for marital status is 12/31. If you were married on 12/31, you can't file single.

If his decree gives him the right to claim the kids whether or not his support is paid up, he should claim the kids on all the old returns & include a copy of the decree. The IRS should read the decree & allow the exemptions, then bill his ex if she claimed the kids illegally.

Also, if he can prove the kids were with him more, he was the custodial parent & can file head of household & maybe claim EIC.

Thank you so much, I will share this with him. While they were "just separated" I don't know that he necessarily did have rights to claiming them (meaning I don't know if she did when she should not have).

I was not at all trying to imply that he wanted forgiveness on any arrears OR that he is looking for "credit" - -all I was saying was that his CS is so high that he can't take on paying the IRS (IF he does owe) - at least until this summer, when his car will finally be paid off! Then he can repay what he might owe Uncle Sam. I agree with what one of your first sentences said about even if they take the $ refund, it'll pay down what he may have owed for another year.

I am here asking these questions to learn and to move forward. If we didn't care, I would not be here trying to find direction.
Now that we know so long as he gets filed we're in the right step, I feel much better and I think that he will too.

And also knowing that I can get things started for him while he is away working out of state, that is really something for us to consider. I don't know if he will be back by April 15th. There is a lot of work down there, so I am thinking maybe not.

Getting all this info is very helpful and it eases my mind at least that it will be better to get started and then go from there,

Thank you very much

ablessin · Jan 31, 2006

I was doing a little homework today, as I was printing off the past few years tax forms and tax schedules.

I called the IRS, explained that he has some back tax issues and what can I do to keep my portion of the refund I would be due based on my wages.
I was told to file a 8379 Injured Spouse form with our return....that will keep my appropriate refund entitlement to myself while crediting him for filing his taxes while he takes care of last couple years.
They said provided I have no legal responsibility to pay the past debt, which I don't because we were not married, they said my return is still mine.

I am so relieved. I think we both will feel so relieved when the past couple years are resolved.

Thank you for your time!!

LdiJ · Jan 31, 2006

ablessin said:
I was doing a little homework today, as I was printing off the past few years tax forms and tax schedules.

I called the IRS, explained that he has some back tax issues and what can I do to keep my portion of the refund I would be due based on my wages.
I was told to file a 8379 Injured Spouse form with our return....that will keep my appropriate refund entitlement to myself while crediting him for filing his taxes while he takes care of last couple years.
They said provided I have no legal responsibility to pay the past debt, which I don't because we were not married, they said my return is still mine.

I am so relieved. I think we both will feel so relieved when the past couple years are resolved.

Thank you for your time!!

Again....he needs to resolve those past years and he needs to go it now even it if results in him owing. Odds are he won't owe...but its smarter to start the clock ticking now rather than waiting.

income taxes/step kids

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