Divorced Parents: Father claims HoH for me, do not live with him

<p>My parents have been divorced for ~10 years. I do not live with my father, but he has claimed me for HoH since the divorce (not supposed to, I know). My father makes 28k annually, which is about 20k less than my mother, the parent I live with. My father lives ~45 minutes away and out of the school district from which I will graduate. Because the IRS is under the impression I live with him, could I pull off using his w-2?</p>

<p>No…it doesn’t matter who claims you for taxes (that’s for your parents to decide)…it matters who you live with for FA purposes…and the school district is a dead giveaway.</p>

<p>there’s nothing wrong with your dad claiming you… If your mom is ok with it then it’s fine. Does your dad pay child support for you?</p>

<p>I think you are confusing two different tax issues. Does your Dad claim you as a dependent? That can be either parent for tax purposes regardless of where you live. Does your Dad file his taxes as HOH (Head of household) an entirely different issue. He cannot file as Head of Household unless he actually IS HOH - single with dependents living with him. Does he have any dependents living with him?</p>

<p>Your Mom can file as HOH since you live with her even without claiming you as a dependent. She should be providing Form 8832 - that assigns the dependent exemption to your Dad since you live with your Mom. </p>

<p>For FAFSA you file the information of the custodial parent (one you live with) regardless of who claims you on their taxes.</p>

<p>Joint custody. Spends equal time w both. (would be impossible to figure out to the day who he’s with) Driver License has father’s address. Same school district.</p>

<p>Can I use ex for FAFSA? Better for S2, but don’t want any issues.</p>

<p>Also…niece clicked no FA and sent on apps. BIG oops. Can that be rectified w/o penalty now?</p>

<p>I think if the child spends equal time with both parents then usually the parent with the higher income is used.</p>

<p>“Also…niece clicked no FA and sent on apps. BIG oops. Can that be rectified w/o penalty now?”</p>

<p>She should pick up the phone and call each of the schools and ask them what they want her to do. It may be possible to just edit her apps, and re-send them.</p>

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<p>Actually it is the parent who provides more financial support, which may or may not be the higher income parent.</p>

<p>HOH status is determined by the parent that has the child the most number of days. If it is even (and that is generally not possible without a leap year), the tie breaker is the parent with the higher income). In battles with parents, IRS will ask for a count of days. </p>

<p>Truthfully, using dad as custodial parent will be easier to prove for the FAFSA because of the tax form.</p>