My girlfriend and I have a child she claimed our daughter and I am not trying to claim her do I need to add her information still? We live together and are together

[Bsch4477]

If mother is claiming the child leave the child off of your return. 

[xmasbaby0]

If you are all living together as a family, then only one of you can claim the child on a tax return, and "perhaps" file as Head of Household.  The other one must file Single and nothing about the child gets entered on your tax return.

[Mike9241]

if you lived together that raises the question of whether you could claim the child as a qualifying  child

The IRS says when both parents can claim the child it supposed to be the one with the highest adjusted gross income.

Qualifying child – and eligible to be claimed as a dependent the rules are:

• Related -son. daughter. stepchild, eligible foster child, or a descendent of my of them; brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister or a descendent of any of them. Adopted child if legally adopted or an individual lawfully placed with the taxpayer for legal adoption. Eligible foster child is one placed with the taxpayer by an authorized placement agency or by judgment decree or order of any court with jurisdiction
•  Same principal abode as the taxpayer for more than ½ the tax year.  Temporary absences like

for school are ignored

• If not a full-time student, under 19 at the end of the tax year.  If a full-time student under 24 at end of tax year.  

Full-time means an individual who during each of 5 calendar months during the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins is a full-time student at an educational organization described in section 170(b)(1)(A)(ii), or is pursuing a full-time course of institutional on-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational organization described in or of a State or political subdivision of a State.

• Hasn’t provided over ½ his/her own support
• Hasn’t filed a joint return – unless there is no tax liability
• A US citizen, resident alien or national, or a resident of Canada or Mexico

[NCperson]

@rymian414  the IRS lets the two of you agree who can claim the child.  But be careful.

It is best that the person who is contributing more than 50% of the household expenses claim the child here is why:

there are two major rules to file HOH:

1) you must provide over 50% of the household expenses

2) you must have a qualifying person.

if you provide more thamn 50% of the household expenses, but the other parent claims the child, you can not satisfy both conditions, so your filing status is SINGLE.

if the other parent claims the child but doesn't provide 50% of the household expenses, the other parent can not satisfy both conditions, so that parent has to file SINGLE as well.

but if the person who provides more than 50% of the household expenses also claims the child, then that person can file HOH and the other parent files SINGLE.  It is a much better tax outcome this way.

[Hal_Al]

If you and the other parent live together, either one of you (but not both) may claim the child. You may decide between you which one will claim the child. Only if you can’t agree, do the IRS tie breaker rules apply, to see who has first choice.

It is usually best that the person who is contributing more than 50% of the household expenses claim the child.

But the only way to be sure is to prepare trial returns, both ways,  to see which way the family comes out best. This tool may be useful: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/taxcaster/?s=1.

Using the TurboTax download software (rather than online) is better for doing trial returns.