My child's other parent claimed her for earned income credit but I am supposed to get the child tax credit. How do I do this?

[jessicathurston8]

When she filed her income taxes they told her the IRS required that the parent that had primary custody claim the earned income credit but that with an 8332 I could still claim child tax credit. I don't know how to properly fill out my return to reflect this fact.

[Hal_Al · Accepted solution]

To get the Child Tax Credit, you also claim the child as a dependent. You enter the child as a dependent in the personal info section. Answer the follow up interview questions carefully so that you don't try to claim the EIC and other stuff that the custodial parent claims.

Here's the full rule:

 There is a special rule in the case of divorced & separated (including never married) parents. When the non-custodial parent is claiming the child as a dependent/exemption/child tax credit; the custodial parent is still allowed to claim the same child for Earned Income Credit, Head of Household filing status, and day care credit. This "splitting of the child" is not available to parents who lived together at any time during the last 6 months of the year; then only one of you can claim the child for any tax reasons. The tax benefits may not be split in any other manner.

Note in particular that the non-custodial parent can never claim the Earned Income Credit, Head of Household filing status or the day care credit, based on that child, even when the custodial parent has released the exemption to him.