Speaking of tax return...

[Sunshine1]

DH has custody.  He gets younger child for deductions and BM gets older child.  BM hasn't worked for I don't know how long and does not file taxes.  We learned that BM's boyfriend claimed the oldest on his taxes.  They do not live together and both children live with DH full time.

Court orders do not specifically asy that if BM is in CS arrears that DH will get deduction so we never did anything about it until she stopped really working and got CS stopped too.  Now we would liek the tax deduction.

1. Boyfriend can't claim that child as a deduction, they have children together but the two don't live together and the child in question does not live there either...can he?

2. If no, what do we do to expose what they are doing?

3. Can DH file an amended return since BM obviously didn't take the deduction and gave it to her boyfriend?

[socrateaser]

>DH has custody.  He gets younger child for deductions and BM
>gets older child.  BM hasn't worked for I don't know how long
>and does not file taxes.  We learned that BM's boyfriend
>claimed the oldest on his taxes.  They do not live together
>and both children live with DH full time.
>
>Court orders do not specifically asy that if BM is in CS
>arrears that DH will get deduction so we never did anything
>about it until she stopped really working and got CS stopped
>too.  Now we would liek the tax deduction.
>
>1. Boyfriend can't claim that child as a deduction, they have
>children together but the two don't live together and the
>child in question does not live there either...can he?

No. See IRS Publication 504.

>2. If no, what do we do to expose what they are doing?

You can report to the IRS, but this won't get you the dependent exemption. For that, you need a court order from the family court, overriding your existing orders. Obviously, if you subpoena the boyfriend to court and instruct him to bring a copy of his tax return, and the same for the mother, and it turns out that this child is on his return and not hers and they don't live together, then all of this would go a long way to having the court order you the exemption.

>3. Can DH file an amended return since BM obviously didn't
>take the deduction and gave it to her boyfriend?

If you file an amended return, the IRS will deny the exemption when they see that it's already been taken by someone else. Then you will have to provide documentary evidence proving that you are entitled to the exemption. If your court orders give the exemption to the other parent, then you cannot prove your case to the IRS. Neither can the mother or the boyfriend, but IRS won't ask them to provide proof until you provide proof at your end, such that there is a preponderance of evidence in your favor. THEN, the IRS will ask the person who took the exemption to prove that he's entitled to it. Which, he can't.

However, it's not clear to me that you're entitled to the exemption, either, so it could end up going down a dark hole.

Of course you could kindly suggest to the mother that you'd like her to sign over the exemption for the year that the boyfriend unlawfully took it, or you may decide to report the matter to the IRS. That would be criminal extortion, however, so I can't recommend it as a course of action.