Can I claim my daughter, her father claimed her on his 2020 taxes but now he is in jail should I claim her on my 2022 taxes?

[raynery09]

Can I claim my daughter, her father claimed her on his 2020 taxes but now he is in jail should I claim her on my 2022 taxes?

[xmasbaby0]

Well----did she live with you----or have you paid for over half her support for 2021?  You say "now" he is in jail---as of when?   --- and where has your child been living in 2021?

IRS interview to help determine who can be claimed:

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/who-can-i-claim-as-a-dependent

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/3113432-who-can-i-claim-as-my-dependent  

[xmasbaby0]

Oh---and it will not be your "2022 taxes"----the next tax return anyone will prepare and file will be a 2021 tax return with a filing deadline of April 15 2022.   The tax return is your 2021 return.

[raynery09]

She live with me, and yes I paid for all her support over the year, he is in Jail since the begging of this year untill 2023 

[raynery09]

So I will be able to claim her? 

[xmasbaby0]

If she lived with you for all of 2021 then yes you are the one who can claim her.   You can file as Head of Household and you will be the parent who can get EIC if you qualify, as well as the childcare credit if you paid for someone to take care of the child while you worked.   And you get the child tax credit.   Enter your child as your dependent in My Info and make sure to enter her Social Security number.

[raynery09]

Okay Thank you! 

[Carl]

The subject of your post refers to 2022 taxes. I'm confident you mean your 2021 taxes.

The fact the father was incarcerated really doesn't play into this "in a sense". What matters is if you qualify to claim the child per the "qualifying child rules" if the dependent was under the age of 19 on Dec 31 of the tax year, or a full time student in 2021 under the age of 24.

Otherwise, the "Qualifying relative dependent rules" come into play. I see above that @xmasbaby0 has already referenced the necessary websites. So I won't duplicate here.

[raynery09]

Thank you!