@meflow very good question.
You have options here.
You can choose to alternate years you each will be claiming dependent.
Example:
one parent can claim the child or children in odd years, and the other parent can claim the child or children in even years
Another example:
The custodial parent can still qualify for head of household filing status even though for that year, the noncustodial parent is claiming the child, if you meet the following requirements:
- You're not married, or you’re considered unmarried on the last day of the year.
- You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up a home, that was your home and the main home of your child for more than one-half of the year.
- Your child is your qualifying child for purposes other than the dependency exemption and the child tax credit.
So again, each year you can consider which would be more beneficial as to who claims the child for that year.
I hope this helps
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