Necessary context: I’ll be as short and clear as possible.
My son is 1.5 years old. Born in May of 2024. From the time he was born he was with me 5 days a week on average. No custody was ever set until later on.
Around the end of January I filed an EPO. Not sure that the details of that are necessary but I was eventually granted the EPO(which changed to a DVO) that named myself and my son. Meaning no contact could be made other than biweekly supervised visits. I’m only giving this info so I’m not roasted for waiting this long to figure this out. A lot has been going on haha
In January I filed my taxes and it was rejected by the IRS because my son’s mother claimed him as a dependent. The IRS does not tell you who claimed the dependent, but before the filing of the EPO she confirmed it was her. From what I can find, this is illegal since I had him well over half the time, even without set custody. I have proof such as court documents, dated pictures of him with me and family. The court documents I believe is plenty of proof since the amount of time she was willing to keep him was in question in court.
My question is, what do I need to do to fix this? How?
I’m pretty much illiterate on this topic. My tax knowledge stops at punching numbers in on turbo tax and I think it’s theft.
Thanks in advance.
https://i.redd.it/vhscjqkt9cyf1.jpeg
Posted by mtkidd7
13 Comments
First step is to just mail in your tax return.
Then wait to see if the IRS approves it, or asks you for proof.
But for now you just mail in your tax return.
I would also like to add, I did do my own research but it seems there are multiple ways to do this.
I don’t think I should resubmit without changing.
https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/identity-theft-dependents
This link from the IRS says they should have contacted me and the other person who claimed him about 2 months after filing. To my knowledge the only contact I received was TurboTax informing me it was rejected.
Go and get an IP pin from the IRS site and then enter that pin into your return. Then you will be able to override the rejection and e-file. Eventually the IRS will reach out to you and her to get this resolved. Don’t paper file, especially with the IRS shut down.
Get your IP Pin here. https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/get-an-identity-protection-pin
We had this happen (husband’s ex wife claimed a kiddo that he gets to claim per parenting plan). He called her out on it and she amended her tax return. If she had not, we would have taken her to family court for contempt since it was outlined for their situation.
If you sign up for an IP PIN on the irs website, you can efile. It’s something new this year.
Make sure you get an IP PIN to prevent this from happening again.
As others have said, get a PIN. It’ll prevent her from being able to do it again next year.
[IP PIN](https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-takes-steps-to-help-prevent-refund-delays-by-accepting-duplicate-dependent-returns-with-an-ip-pin-for-2025-filing-season-taxpayers-encouraged-to-sign-up-soon-for-ip-pin-online-account)
The primary taxpayer can get an IP PIN for this year or for this year and future years and that should allow the return to be filed electronically with the duplicate dependent. You can also file by paper, it will be accepted and processed but take longer.
Paper file, and wait to see what happens. irs may send a letter to one or both of you independently to determine who qualifies for the credit(s) and/or head of household status.
IRS now allows a re-efile for this reason as long as the primary taxpayer obtains an e-file PIN.
*”Beginning in the 2025 filing season, the IRS will accept Forms 1040, 1040-NR and 1040-SS even if a dependent has already been claimed on a previously filed return as long as the primary taxpayer on the second return includes a valid Identity Protection Personal Identification Number (IP PIN). “*
The IRS will review/audit both returns and contact you to adjudicate the conflict.
I’d also suggest applying for an Identity PIN for the dependent so that this won’t happen again.
[https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-takes-steps-to-help-prevent-refund-delays-by-accepting-duplicate-dependent-returns-with-an-ip-pin-for-2025-filing-season-taxpayers-encouraged-to-sign-up-soon-for-ip-pin-online-account](https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-takes-steps-to-help-prevent-refund-delays-by-accepting-duplicate-dependent-returns-with-an-ip-pin-for-2025-filing-season-taxpayers-encouraged-to-sign-up-soon-for-ip-pin-online-account)
I have not tried this but if the primary taxpayer applies for, receives, and uses an Identity Protection PIN, it may be possible to e-file the return rather than mailing it.
The same caveats noted apply regarding what the IRS will do with it.
As someone who works for a state tax agency and often reviews cases like this, since you’re paper filing anyways, it makes it easy to attach your proof of custody/court orders with the return. We unfortunately see this a lot, it is considered a civil matter, but including your documentation with the return may expedite processing a bit and save you the step of sending documents separately. There is a required timeframe to allow both parties to respond, but if your documents prove without a doubt that you have the right to claim, it will make things a bit easier for you. Then get a pin for your child as well as others have suggested.
Just file a paper return. When they get a return also claiming the child, each of you will be asked to provide proof you’re eligible to claim him. Whoever provides proof “wins”