If my partner paid for my dependents medical insurance does she HAVE to claim him on taxes or am I able to?

[DoninGA]

Paying for the medical insurance has no bearing whatsoever on whether or not she can claim him as her dependent.

[DawnC]

No, she doesn't have to claim your dependents.   You are able to claim dependents based on the guidelines here.  

• To claim a dependent, you (or your spouse if filing a joint return) can't be eligible to be claimed by someone else as their dependent.  A person who qualifies as a dependent can't claim another dependent.
 

• A dependent can be a qualifying child or a qualifying relative.
 

• A qualifying child can be your biological child, stepchild, foster child, sibling, step-sibling, or a descendant of these individuals, provided they are less than 19 years old (or 24 if a full-time student) for the entire tax year and meet other requirements.
 

• A qualifying relative can be almost anyone that meets specific requirements, including that you provided more than half of their support, they lived with you the entire year (with exceptions of certain relatives such as your parents), and they did not have gross taxable income greater than the annual threshold of $4,700 in 2023 or $5,050 in 2024.

Video Explanation

[Opus 17]

There are a lot of possibilities and you haven't given enough facts to really answer the question.

Is this a child you share (you are the two biological parents)?  

Are you talking about Affordable Care Act subsidies (Marketplace insurance)?

Do you live together unmarried and share custody?  Certain rules that apply to divorced or separated parents may not apply when you live together.

If your partner has medical insurance through work, they can cover their biological child even if they don't claim the child as a tax dependent.  However, if the child is not their biological child and not their tax dependent, there can be significant tax consequences for the employer and the employee.

We really need more information.