She cannot claim that anyway using the child for EIC if the child does not live with her. The tax law forbids that. To claim a dependent for EIC requires that you certify under penalty of perjury that the child lived with you for more than half the year. (Not to say that many people don't violate the law and do not get caught, but like speeding, if you get caught the penalty can be high. And the IRS does conduct random audits to catch cheaters)
No, you are not required to give a 8332 unless you have an agreement or court order, but you can if you want to release the exemption - that is up to you.
Regardless if you claim the EIC and HOH or not, the parent that did not physically live with the child cannot (legally) claim those credits.
To enter into TurboTax.
If you are the custodial parent where the child physically lived for more than half the year (183 nights) then:
When you enter the dependent, you say that he/she is "Your child" (not you and your spouse if remarried),
he/she lived with you the whole year,
“no” the child did not pay more than half of his/her own support,
"yes", you have a custody agreement,
and "yes", the other parent is claiming this year.
That will give you the EIC, Child Care Credit and Head of Household filing status if you otherwise qualify.
The child would be listed as "non-dependent EIC & Dependent Care only".
The other (non-custodial) parent can claim the child’s exemption and child tax credit only and needs a signed 8332 form to do so.
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If you are the non-custodial parent where the child did not physically live for more than half the year (183 nights) then:
When you enter the dependent, you say that he is "Your child" (not you and new spouse if remarried),
He/she lived with you zero months,
“no” the child did not pay more than half of his/her own support,
"yes", you have a custody agreement, and
"yes” I am claiming this year.
That will give you the child's exemption, and child tax credit.
The EIC, and Child Care Credits can only be claimed by the parent where the child actually lived.
**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**
