What can we do about my boyfriends exwife falsely claiming their son on her taxes.

[ashleyholt22]

For the last 2 years my boyfriends exwife has proceeded to falsley file   their Son on her income taxes and claim the child dependent tax credit for him therefore, pardon but, screwing us out of a major tax break we desperately need and he resides with my boyfriend and I year round, FULL TIME, & she has never given us a cent to help. She already has custody of their daughter and is court allotted to claim her on her taxes as such but my boyfriend is supposed to get to file their Son and she's just illegally done so. Mind you she is literally transitioning out of a  rehabilitation center for substance abuse that she was court ordered to adhere to in order to avoid actual prison time for the charges of,  check this, forgery, falsely writing and cashing checks, impersonation and identity theft, amongst many other misdemeanor charges. And she was just recently given back the right to employment outside the rehab so she has no right at all to claim him. Please help. 

[Vanessa A]

All you need to do is file your return and claim him if he lives with your BF  year round.  The IRS will use the Tie Breaker Rules to determine who gets to claim them.

Starting with this tax year, you can get an IP PIN which will allow you to e-file your return when your dependent has already been claimed on another return. 

[xmasbaby0]

Way too much information about the ex.......we did not need to know all of that.

If the "ex" e-filed first and claimed a child she should not have claimed, then your BF needs to mail his own return that claims the child.  He will not be able to e-file with his child's SSN on his return.   The IRS will process a mailed return differently.  Eventually the IRS will send letters to sort out who had the right to claim the child and the "ex" may face penalties and repayment of any child-related credits received in error.

When you mail a tax return, you need to attach any documents showing tax withheld, such as your W-2’s or any 1099’s.  Use a mailing service that will track it, such as UPS or certified mail so you will know the IRS/state received the return.

Federal and state returns must be in separate envelopes and they are mailed to different addresses.  Read the mailing instructions that print with your tax return carefully so you mail them to the right addresses.

Going forward, your BF could get an IRS IP Pin for the child to prevent this.

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-takes-steps-to-help-prevent-refund-delays-by-accepting-duplicate-de...

https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/get-an-identity-protection-pin

[DawnC]

As mentioned above, he can request an IP PIN.   Beginning in the 2025 filing season, the IRS will accept Forms 1040, 1040-NR and 1040-SS even if a dependent has already been claimed on a previously filed return as long as the primary taxpayer on the second return includes a valid Identity Protection Personal Identification Number (IP PIN).   This change will reduce the time for the agency to receive the tax return and accelerate the issuance of tax refunds for those with duplicate dependent returns.  More information

What Happens When Both Parents Claim a Child on their Tax Return?