Situation is a married couple. One spouse insists on filing a separate return and makes the least amount of money (substantially less). The other spouse obviously provides most of the support for both the spouse and the three children.
The spouse insisting on married filing separate is not cooperative on how to split the children for the dependent deduction, and obviously 1.5 each way is not feasible. Given it is a community property state, the income will be split equally (50% of each spouse).
But any suggestions on how to handle the deductions for the three children? If the insistent spouse grabs 2 (or even 3) then they will have a lower tax bill and leave the spouse who makes most of the money with a far higher tax bill.
If they fail to cooperate (each claims 3) then that sets up a problem with the IRS.
Thoughts on an uncooperative married couple please?
