Good Evening! I Taxpayer (Darlene ....) received (this week) a letter from IRS, whether I made an error claiming my son (last SS# ending in ....). The answer is NO !

[darlrg]

I Taxpayer (Darlene ....) did reply back to IRS (Department of Treasury) letting them know that I (Darlene .....) had all rights and privileges to claim my son as a sole dependent in the year 2015.  The problem was that someone else claim my son using the same SS# ending in ####.  I adopted my son in the year 2013, legally, making me the sole custodial parent, and no  one else.

My Important Question is, after receiving this letter from IRS Department of Treasury, will I still be able to file my Federal taxes beginning January 2017 for 2016? 

REMINDER!  The IRS letter was not an AUDIT letter. Just a letter of concerns!

Thanks!

[SweetieJean]

This is a public internet forum.

[Hal_Al · Accepted solution]

Yes, you can claim your son on your 2016 return.

The other person, that claimed your child, got the same letter. . If one of you doesn't file an amended return, unclaiming the child, the next letter, from the IRS, will require you to provide proof that you are entitled to the dependent. Be sure to reply, to the 2nd letter, in a timely manner.

Winner gets the tax benefits; loser gets to pay the IRS back with penalties and interest.  The custodial parent almost always wins. The non-custodial parent can only claim the child as a dependent if the custodial parent gives permission (on form 8332) or if it's spelled out in a pre 2009 divorce decree.  

http://taxes.about.com/od/dependents/qt/Dependents-Audits.htm

www.eitc.irs.gov/EITCCentral/f886-h-dep.pdf

[Odell]

This is a public user-to-user forum. Please do not post any personal information such as entire name, social security numbers, etc. We removed the personal information you posted. 

Our Super User, Hal_Al, addressed your question about claiming your dependent when filing your taxes in the future.