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sleepy2
New Member

How do you claim a dependent who was wrongly claimed on someone else's return?

Our daughter lived in IL and had a child on March 21, 2017 but never married the father. They lived together for about six months before she left on September 24th and moved back to TX. So mom was with the child the whole year and dad did not see the child after September 24th. We have read form 8332 and believe mom is the custodial parent since her son was with her the entire year and dad did not see him after September 24th. Mom did not give permission to dad verbally or via form 8332 to claim their son on his taxes but he already has so when she filed her return claiming her son the tax return of course was rejected. Is her only recourse to submit the return by mail and let the IRS contact her to provide proof that she indeed is the custodial parent? This is a big mess. Thanks for your help! 

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How do you claim a dependent who was wrongly claimed on someone else's return?

I am sorry to say, but the advice you have received is correct.

Your daughter cannot e-file with her child because the child's SS number has already been used. Therefore, the only way to file the return with her daughter on it is to mail the return, to bypass the e-file filter.

The IRS will eventually notice that the child's SSN is on two different tax returns, and will reach out to both parties to sort out the situation.

Yes, this situation encourages taxpayers to file as quickly as possible because the first taxpayer to file with a dependent, wins (at least temporarily).

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3 Replies

How do you claim a dependent who was wrongly claimed on someone else's return?

I am sorry to say, but the advice you have received is correct.

Your daughter cannot e-file with her child because the child's SS number has already been used. Therefore, the only way to file the return with her daughter on it is to mail the return, to bypass the e-file filter.

The IRS will eventually notice that the child's SSN is on two different tax returns, and will reach out to both parties to sort out the situation.

Yes, this situation encourages taxpayers to file as quickly as possible because the first taxpayer to file with a dependent, wins (at least temporarily).

sleepy2
New Member

How do you claim a dependent who was wrongly claimed on someone else's return?

Thank you! Is mom considered the custodial parent since the child lived with mom only for the last three months  of 2017?

How do you claim a dependent who was wrongly claimed on someone else's return?

In this case, yes, because the child was with the mother for more days (9 months) than the father (6 months). The IRS says:
"Custodial parent and noncustodial parent. The custodial parent is the parent with whom the child lived for the greater number of nights during the year. The other parent is the noncustodial parent. If the parents divorced or separated during the year and the child lived with both parents before the separation, the custodial parent is the one with whom the child lived for the greater number of nights during the rest of the year." (page 28 at <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p17.pdf">https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p17.pdf</a>)
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