Me, my 2 boys and fiance live together past year. I lost my job end of the year so my fiance took care of us financially. We are not married, can he claim my children?

[bel18cheer]

My boys are not biologically his but he acts as a dad 100 percent

[Coleen3 · Accepted solution]

He can potentially claim them but not as his own children. See the rules for Qualifying Relative below. They do not qualify him for Head of Household.

Qualifying Relative

• Do they live with you? Your relative must live at your residence all year or be on the list of “relatives who do not live with you” in Publication 501. About 30 types of relatives are on this list.
• Do they make less than $4,050? Your relative cannot have a gross income of more than $4,050 and be claimed by you as a dependent. 
• Do you financially support them? You must provide more than half of your relative’s total support each year. 
• Are they a citizen or resident? The person must be a U.S. citizen, a U.S. national, a U.S. resident, or a resident of Canada or Mexico. Many people wonder if they can claim a foreign-exchange student who temporarily lives with them. The answer is maybe, but only if they meet this requirement.
• Are you the only person claiming them as a dependent? You can’t claim someone who takes a personal exemption for himself or claims another dependent on his own tax form.
• Are they filing a joint return? You cannot claim someone who is married and files a joint tax return. Say you support your married teen-aged son: If he files a joint return with his spouse, you can’t claim him as a dependent.

[bel18cheer]

So he would have to claim single?

[Coleen3]

Yes.