Parents with two children might think that their divorce agreement is equitable if they opt for joint custody — spending exactly six months out of the year with each child.
In this case, neither can claim head of household.
“If you just add one more day of custody for each child, both parents can claim head of household,” said Stolz.
To allow both parents a bite of the “head of household” apple on alternating years, divorcees with one child can agree to trade off on claiming the dependent.
Alternating years also works in situations where there are three or more children — considering the value of the child tax credits — one parent can claim two kids, while the other claims the third, said Freeman.
Finally, a non-custodial parent who provides support can agree to claim the child tax credit, provided the custodial parent is willing to sign it away using Form 8332, said Suzanne Shier, chief tax strategist at Northern Trust Wealth Management.
“The tax preparer actually has to certify that they have explained the rules of claiming the child tax credits in the case of divorced parents, along with the requirements of Form 8332,” she said.
Be the first to comment