Can non-custodial parent take child as dependent after support payments stop?

[murphyslaw]

What is the name of your state?
I live in Illinois. I am divorced with a 19 year old child living at home with me. I agreed to let my ex-husband take our child as his dependent on his taxes as long as he was current on his child support payments. Every year I have signed form 8332 which allowed this. This past year our child turned 18, graduated from highschool and child support payments ended in May. My ex-husband just came to me with the 8332 form and asked me to sign it. I refused, based on the fact that he no longer supports her and did not support her for the last 7 months of the year. He claims that he is current with his child support payments and that I am in contempt of an agreed court order by not signing it. My question is this: Is my ex-husband entitled to take her as his dependent even though he no longer pays child support and has not been providing her support for the majority of the year? I want to be fair about this and also work within the limits of the law so any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Snipes5]

The tax code says you can, but you should have an attorney look at the court documents and make the final determination for you.

Just because the tax code says you can, doesn't necessarily mean the courts will allow it.

Snipes

 

[luvmy5kids]

What is the name of your state?
I live in Illinois. I am divorced with a 19 year old child living at home with me. I agreed to let my ex-husband take our child as his dependent on his taxes as long as he was current on his child support payments. Every year I have signed form 8332 which allowed this. This past year our child turned 18, graduated from highschool and child support payments ended in May. My ex-husband just came to me with the 8332 form and asked me to sign it. I refused, based on the fact that he no longer supports her and did not support her for the last 7 months of the year. He claims that he is current with his child support payments and that I am in contempt of an agreed court order by not signing it. My question is this: Is my ex-husband entitled to take her as his dependent even though he no longer pays child support and has not been providing her support for the majority of the year? I want to be fair about this and also work within the limits of the law so any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Once any person becomes 18 he/she is responsible to file Federal Taxes. He is NOT entitled to take her as a dependent unless she grants it. Your child should be filing all necessary tax form of her own now UNLESS she has agreed to be claimed by one of you. It is no longer YOUR job to release her as a dependent on his taxes...it's hers. Your daughter can allow you or he to claim her BUT if she decides to file taxes on her own whoever has her on their taxes as a dependent will be committing tax fraud.

 

[Snipes5]

Why don't you try reading the tax code before you spout off?

Your response is completely full of crap.

The custodial parent can claim a child regardless of the child's income until the child reaches the age of 19. After that, if the child is a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, the parent can claim the child regardless of the child's income.

If the child is not a student, and income is below the threshhold ($3100 for '04), the custodial parent can claim the child.

The ONLY time that an exemption can be "given away", is when the parents are either divorced or never married and one agrees to let the other have it, as in the case here.

Further, if the Custodial Parent is providing more than 50% of the child's support, and the child claims her own exemption on her own tax return, the CHILD'S tax return is incorrect.

This isn't tax fraud unless there is some kind of intent to cheat the government. This is merely an innocent mistake that happens all the time.

Snipes