Tax Exemption – general information

The question of which party gets to claim the children for tax purposes comes up often.

If the issue is not addressed in the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage, then the party who has the majority of overnights with the children pursuant to the Parenting Plan and Timesharing arrangement will get to claim them.

The issue of who claims the children is negotiable and it is proper for either party to be able to claim the children. If there is no agreement on the subject then the court has the power to decide the issue.

One important note to remember is that “who” claims the children usually has an impact on the amount of child support paid. If the paying party claims the children then his/her child support obligation will usually be higher.