To summarize then (based on my understanding of the above discussion) if divorced parents share custody and agree to take their child as a dependent on alternate years, then only the custodial parent may ever take the EIC/dependent care credit on her/his tax return, regardless of which parent claims the child as a dependent/exemption for the tax year. To further underscore this I found the following statement at the inuit link "Tax Tips for Separated Couples"
<a href="
https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Tax-Tips-for-Separated-Couples/INF22372.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">
https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Tax-Tips-for-Separated-Couples/INF22372.html</...>
If you, as custodial parent, agree to let your spouse claim your child as a dependent exemption, you must sign form 8332, Release/Revocation of Release of Claim to Exemption for Child by Custodial Parent. Your noncustodial spouse must attach it to his tax return. Relinquishing this exemption does not affect your ability to file as head of household or take advantage of tax breaks such as the work-related child care expense deduction, as long as you remain the custodial parent.
One remaining question then, assuming the preceding is correct, is this: if the two divorced parents actually share the day-care expense, then when the custodial parent claims the child care credit is she/he limited to only the portion she/he pays for the share expense? If this is so then it seems like it's best for the custodial parent to always pay the bulk of the child care expense for the year, ... unless there's an additional limit based on the earned income of the custodial parent. Is this basically correct and, if so, is it simple to determine the limit for the custodial parent?
