If your child lives with you over half the year then you are the custodial parent. The custodial parent is entitled to the Head of Household filing status, EIC and Child Care Credit if they qualify. If you allow the other parent to claim the dependency, you still are entitled to these benefits.
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.
A child is treated as living with a parent for a night
if the child sleeps:
- At that parent's home, whether or not the parent is
present, or
- In the company of the parent, when the child doesn't
sleep at a parent's home (for example, the parent and child are on
vacation together).
Equal number of
nights. If the child lived with each parent for an
equal number of nights during the year, the custodial parent is the parent with
the higher adjusted gross income (AGI
