Re: Deductions for foster children

If a foster child is with us from Jan1 to mid November and stays in the custody of the state, but changes placement, can we still claim them as they lived with us more than 6 months and 1 day and should not be eligible for anyone else to claim

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If placed with you by a government agency then as long as the child physically lived with you more then 1/2 the year (183 nights or more) then you can claim the same way as your own child.

**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.**

Assuming the child is placed in your home by the state, or by an agency or process recognized by the state, then your legal right to claim them as a dependent is the same as a biological parent. If they lived in your home more than half the nights of the year, you have the first entitlement to claim them as a dependent even if they were returned to their biological parent.