@aceensor wrote:
To file HOH, you need to draw up a decree stating which tax years either of you claims dependents. If you have more than one, maybe consider splitting them and you can both file as HOH. In either case, the decree stating who gets to claim dependents and/or how many if they're to be split is a big factor in whether you can clsim HOH.
No. This is incorrect on 2 levels.
First, HOH is only available to the parent where the child lived more than half the year. HOH ignores all custody agreements and is only based on where the child actually physically lived.
Second, even if there is a custody agreement about how to claim the dependent in different years, this is not binding on the IRS. The parent where the child lives more than half the year is always the only parent with the automatic right to claim the child as a dependent. The custodial parent may choose to release the dependent to the non-custodial parent. And if there is a court order and the custodial parent refuses to follow it, the non-custodial parent can complain to the family court, but the IRS is a federal agency controlled by federal law, and the IRS will not follow a custody order unless the custodial parent agrees.
