Question

Question 1 (1 point) For purposes of the child and dependent care credit, only the custodial parent can claim a child as a qualifying child. 1) True 2) False

Answer 1

True

In general, the custodial parent claims the child for tax purposes. If the court does not make any orders about the tax deduction, then the custodial parent automatically claims the child as a dependent for tax purposes. The IRS income tax rules say that the parent having custody for the greater portion of the calendar year receives the deduction.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows you to potentially reduce your tax by claiming a dependent child on a tax return. If you do not file a joint return with your child's other parent, then only one of you can claim the child as a dependent. When both parents claim the child, the IRS will usually allow the claim for the parent that the child lived with the most during the year.