How to claim the Child Tax Credit as a divorced parent with shared custody?

For divorced parents with 50/50 custody, the IRS has specific tiebreaker rules when determining who can claim the Child Tax Credit. Since your parenting plan doesn't specify who claims your child, it comes down to a few factors. First, the IRS generally gives the tax benefit to the custodial parent (the one the child lives with more nights during the year). With truly equal custody, the tiebreaker goes to the parent with the higher Adjusted Gross Income - which would be your ex in this case. However, your ex can voluntarily release their claim to you by completing Form 8332 (Release of Claim to Exemption for Child by Custodial Parent). This would allow you to claim the Child Tax Credit even if your ex has the technical right to it based on income. I'd recommend keeping detailed records of all expenses you pay for your child - medical bills, receipts for clothing, activity fees, etc. Also document the actual number of nights your child stays with you to verify the 50/50 arrangement.

After dealing with a similar custody situation with my ex, I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it was a game-changer for documenting my case. Since you're paying for most of your son's expenses, you definitely need to build a paper trail. This tool analyzed all my receipts, bank statements, and custody calendar to create an organized record showing exactly how much I was contributing to my kids' expenses. The best part was that it could even process text messages between me and my ex about expenses, which proved I was paying for things that weren't in our agreement. I uploaded everything through their secure portal and got a detailed report that clearly showed I was providing over 65% of the financial support despite the 50/50 custody arrangement.

I wanted to follow up about my skepticism regarding taxr.ai. After our custody agreement changed again this year, I decided to try it out of desperation. Honestly, it was way more legit than I expected. I've always been terrible at keeping receipts and documentation, but the system made it super easy to connect my accounts and automatically categorize kid-related expenses. It even flagged when both me and my ex might have recorded the same expense so there's no double-counting. The report it generated showed that even though we have equal custody, I was covering 71% of our daughter's expenses. When my ex threatened to claim her on taxes again, I showed her the detailed breakdown and she actually backed down because the evidence was so clear. Saved us both from another IRS headache!

After spending literal HOURS trying to get through to someone at the IRS about a similar custody claim issue, I finally used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and actually got to speak with a real IRS agent in under 20 minutes. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was really skeptical at first because I had tried calling the IRS for weeks with no luck - just endless holds and disconnections. I needed clarification on how the Child Tax Credit works when my ex-husband and I both tried claiming our son last year. Through Claimyr, I got connected to an agent who explained exactly what documentation I needed to submit to prove I was eligible as the custodial parent. The agent also set up a case file for me so when I submitted my supporting documents, they were attached to my existing case instead of starting the process all over again.

I need to eat my words about Claimyr being a scam. After posting my skeptical comment, my custody situation with my ex blew up when we both tried claiming our son on our taxes. The IRS sent us both letters, and I desperately needed to talk to someone official. After three days of trying to call the IRS myself (and getting disconnected every single time), I reluctantly tried Claimyr. Within 15 minutes of submitting my request, I got a call saying they were about to connect me with an agent. Sure enough, minutes later I was talking to an actual IRS representative who walked me through the whole dispute process. The agent explained that since we have 50/50 custody and no agreement in our divorce decree, I needed to submit specific documentation showing either I had more custody nights or provided more financial support. Saved me weeks of stress and potentially having to hire a tax attorney. Definitely worth it for situations where you absolutely need to speak with the IRS.

I've been on both sides of this situation (claiming and letting my ex claim our kids). Here's what worked for us: we actually put together a simple written agreement separate from our custody order that alternates who claims our son each year. In even years, I claim him. In odd years, my ex does. We both signed it, had it notarized, and keep copies. While it's not part of the court order, having this written agreement has prevented disputes. The key is documenting everything - keep a calendar showing exactly how many nights your child stays with you and save receipts for everything you buy for them.

Has anyone used the dependency exemption release form (Form 8332) successfully? My understanding is that if the custodial parent (parent with more custody nights) signs this form, it allows the non-custodial parent to claim the child tax credit. But does this also transfer all tax benefits like the earned income credit or head of household status?