@StephanieSuiter wrote:
I efiled my new son and didn't realize my I could claim my oldest 3. My ex-husband claims them every year bc I haven't been able to work due to health issues and having a new baby. But I have never signed papers for him to claim them and he only has them 13% of the time and takes all their stimulus money as well. Where do I go to file it online and send it to? It didn't reject it bc I wasn't aware I could claim them since he has been without my written/signed consent.
If you have a court order that orders you to allow your ex to claim some of your children, this is what you should be doing:
You list your children on your tax return, state the children lived with you more than half the year, and you are giving the other parent a form 8332 to allow them to claim the child as a dependent (for any children that are covered by the order). The child will still allow you to qualify for EIC, head of household status, and the dependent care credit (if you meet the other qualifications) because those benefits can't be shared or transferred.
Your ex is supposed to say in their tax program that the child lived with them less than half the year and they are claiming the child because of a form 8332. They will get the child or dependent tax credit but will not qualify for EIC or head of household. They must mail the 8332 to the IRS after filing. If you both do this correctly, the IRS will have no problems.
If your ex does not ask for form 8332, the only way they can claim a dependent is if they lie and say the child lived with them. This may cause them to claim extra tax benefits that are not allowed, and it will cause a conflict with your tax return that may cause one or both returns to be rejected and may trigger investigation letters from the IRS.
If you don't have a court order that requires you to allow the ex to claim the children as dependents, then the only parent who is automatically allowed to claim the children as dependents is the parent where the children live more than half the nights of the year. If that is you, then you are entitled to file an amended return that lists all your children as dependents. You would qualify for the $2000 child tax credit for each child, although the actual amount of credit payment will depend on your income earned from working. For 2020 only, you will qualify for a stimulus rebate for each child, even though your ex may have received a stimulus payment earlier based on his 2019 return.
The amended return will likely take 6 months to process. If your ex also claims the same children, the IRS will send letters to both of you to investigate, and you will want to respond with proof that the children live with you more than half the nights of the year. But don't send proof with your amended return, wait until asked.
The amending function may not be turned on yet in Turbotax, it may be another couple of weeks before it is ready, since the just-passed Rescue Plan Act has new tax law changes that must be programmed in.
All these rules are in IRS publication 501. https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-publication-501
