Can grandparents claim my child on taxes if I'm paying child support?

The right to claim a child as a dependent on taxes depends on several factors, not just who provides financial support. The IRS has specific tests to determine who can claim a dependent. For your situation, the most relevant test is the "residency test" - where does Emma live for most of the year? Since she lives with her mother at the grandparents' house, that gives an advantage to either her mother or grandparents. From what you've described, this seems like a case where multiple people could potentially claim Emma, but only one person can actually claim her on taxes. The IRS has tiebreaker rules for these situations: - Parents come before non-parents - If the parents don't file a joint return, the parent who had the child living with them longer gets priority - If the child lived with both parents equally, the parent with the higher AGI gets priority - If neither parent claims the child, then someone else (like grandparents) can claim the child if their AGI is higher than either parent So to directly answer your questions: 1) No, as a parent you would typically have more right to claim Emma than her grandparents, but since she doesn't live with you for most of the year, her mother would likely have first priority. 2) Yes, Jess would likely have more right to claim Emma than you do based on the residency test, even with zero income. Having income isn't a requirement to claim a dependent.

Just wanted to share my experience with this because I went through something similar! I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that helped me understand my rights around dependent claims when my ex's parents were trying to claim my kid. I uploaded my child support payment records and custody documents, and taxr.ai analyzed everything and showed me exactly how the IRS tiebreaker rules applied to my situation. It confirmed that even though my child lived with my ex most of the time, I had documentation proving I provided over 50% of their support, which helped strengthen my position. The tool even generated a letter I could send to my ex explaining the tax implications and why we needed to follow the court order regarding who claims our child. Totally saved me from making a costly mistake and potentially triggering an audit!

I was really skeptical about using taxr.ai like I mentioned above, but I finally decided to try it last week when my ex's new spouse tried claiming my daughter on their taxes. Holy cow, what a difference! The tool analyzed my situation completely differently than I expected. Turns out my court order had specific language about tax dependencies that I completely misunderstood. I was able to download a complete analysis showing exactly why I was in the right according to both the court order AND the IRS rules. When I sent the report to my ex, they actually backed down without a fight because the documentation was so clear. Saved me from having to file an amended return or deal with the IRS rejecting my electronic filing. Definitely worth checking out if you're in a complicated custody situation with tax implications.

Hey there, I had a similar situation with my kids living with ex and her parents. After months of trying to get through to the IRS to resolve the duplicate claiming issue (my ex's parents claimed them when they shouldn't have), I finally found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). They got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes when I'd been trying for weeks! The IRS agent walked me through exactly what documentation I needed to submit to prove I had the right to claim my child based on our court order. You can see how it works in this demo: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c Instead of waiting 8+ months for the IRS to sort it out through correspondence, I got it handled in one phone call. The agent even helped me understand how to prevent this from happening again by filing earlier next year.

OK I need to apologize because I was totally wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate about my audit situation. I had been trying to reach the IRS for MONTHS with no luck. Used Claimyr yesterday and got connected to an agent in about 20 minutes. The agent was able to pull up my file and explain exactly what documentation they needed to resolve my audit. They even gave me a direct fax number to send everything to for faster processing! For anyone dealing with dependent disputes like the original poster - talking to a live IRS agent makes ALL the difference. They explained to me that in custody situations, they look at court orders first, then apply the residency test. Getting clear guidance straight from the IRS saved me from making more mistakes.

You need to check your custody agreement/court order first! In my case, even though my kid lived with my ex more than half the time, our divorce decree specifically stated who gets to claim our child each year (we alternate). The IRS actually follows these court orders when there's a dispute. If your temporary orders don't specify who claims the child, then yes, the residency test would probably give Jess the first right to claim Emma. BUT if you have it written into your court order that you get to claim your daughter, that would override the residency test. Also, something to consider - if Jess has zero income, she wouldn't get much benefit from claiming Emma anyway. Most child tax credits require you to have earned income to fully benefit. Your child support isn't considered income for her - it's tax-neutral.

Make sure you document EVERYTHING. I went through this with my ex's parents trying to claim my kid. Keep receipts for all child support payments, extra expenses, gifts, etc. Also document all visits, calls, and other involvement. If someone incorrectly claims your child and you believe you have the right to claim them, you can still file your return claiming the child (you'll have to paper file if someone else already claimed them electronically). The IRS will then send notices to both parties and investigate. They may ask for proof like: - School/medical records showing the child's address - Court custody agreements - Documentation of financial support - Documentation of your relationship/involvement with the child Sometimes just letting the grandparents know you're going to claim your child and have documentation can prevent the issue entirely!