<p>According to the courts/judge my mom is the "main" parent (I don't know all the divorce terms, sorry), as in we spend more time at her house than at my dad's. (I'm also not sure what kind of custody they're considered to have)</p>
<p>But my parents are very amicable and live less than a mile away from each other, so I'm kind of allowed to go between the houses as I please. I get along with my dad better, so I physically spend more of my time at his house than at my mom's. </p>
<p>When applying for FAFSA, it says to report the income of the parent you spend most time with. Should I provide my dad's info even though things like my school address are set to my mom's house? Am I supposed to/is there a way for me to verify that I do spend more time with my dad?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>IF you physically live more with your dad than your mom, then your dad will be the custodial parent on the FAFSA and you must use his income.</p>
<p>For FAFSA, it’s based on time. If you spend MORE time at your dad’s home, then his info is used. What the courts have decided doesn’t matter at all.</p>
<p>That’s tough since you say “we spend more time at her house than at my dad’s” but also say “I physically spend more of my time at his house than at my mom’s”. </p>
<p>I think I might go with where do you SLEEP more rather than where you hang out more.</p>
<p>…and I love hearing that your parents are amicable and you can go back and forth easily. If you apply to any schools that require non-custodial parent (sounds like your dad, legally) info, that will make life a LOT easier for you :)</p>
<p>It sounds like there are more than one child. Maybe the children (as a whole) spend more time with mom, but THIS CHILD spends more time at dad’s home.</p>
<p>In cases like this, it’s a wise move to make sure you spend one day more with the parent with the least earnings/assets for FAFSA purposed. </p>
<p>Many times, it isn’t going to make a whole lot of difference. Few schools meet full need. THose that do often want NCP info too. and unless you are PELL eligible, the only the thing that may come from one parent over the the other, if that, is more subsidized interest loans. </p>
<p>If you can run estimates (NCPs) with both parents at the schools where you think your are applying, you can see what difference it would make.</p>
<p>For a family here, it did make a difference. Mom was custodial and the kids did tend to spend more time with her, but Dad was unemployed that year, and so claiming his as the custodial parent did make a significant difference in aid. The oldest just made sure he spent a bit more time with Dad than Mom that year. Since he was at school and busy most of the time, it really a matter of just making sure he spent one night at Dad’s place than Moms’.</p>
<p>^^good answer, I was wondering how to put that…</p>
<p>BU and some other PROFILE schools did not hit the NCP as hard as they did the custodial parent in terms of contribution it seemed. For a number of PROFILE school, it appeared that it did not matter who was the custodial parent and who was not, but for some it did. Also some PROFILE schools do not ask for NCP income, I understand. </p>
<p>But if the student is looking at FAFSA only schools, that do not meet full need for most of their kids, it could be a wash. So you get a few thousand more in need with one parent over the other, and it all comes out in loans and work study anyways, or it may simply be witihin the margin of unmet need.</p>
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<p>I meant that according to the court’s approved schedule or whatever, (again, I’m not familiar with divorce terms, sorry) we’re supposed to spend more time at my mother’s house.</p>
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<p>My mom’s income is more than twice as much as my dad’s, so it’s definitely wise for me to continue staying mostly with him. </p>
<p>I just don’t get if/how I’m supposed to verify that I actually spend more time with my dad? It just seems…too easy that I can just say I spend more time with my dad, even though the courts view my mom as the primary caregiver. Wouldn’t all students of divorced parents just say that they live with the parent with the least amount of income?</p>
<p>And thanks for everyone’s responses!</p>
<p>you don’t really “verify”…it’s really mostly what you report. The question would mostly only be an issue really if your dad lived further away, yet your HS was close to mom’s home. </p>
<p>Even if your dad’s income is half of your mom’s income, it still may not be low enough to get much/any aid from the federal govt. If you’re applying to the schools that give the best aid, then they will ask for the info for BOTH parents. </p>
<p>If you’re spending a bunch of time at dad’s home, and mom makes twice the money, does your mom give your dad money to pay for what you kids are eating/consuming while you’re there? </p>
<p>Has your dad remarried? If so, then his wife’s income would count as well.</p>
<p>Just keep a calender, and check off the time spent. The chances are, that there will not be an extensive audit of this, and as Mom2collegekids says, it has more to do if you claim that you are spending more time with a Dad that is far away from your high school. I live right near another state’s line, and it can make a difference as to what state university one can claim for instate tuition. Things like that are more what catch the verification filters, though it has been my observation that schools tend to be pretty lenient on these things. </p>
<p>In your case, you are in the clover pretty much with this… Just keep a tally, a calendar. As Mom2 says, it may not make much of a difference anyways, but every bit can count. The problem with even having more need, is that it usually isn’t met fully anyways, and the more generous schools want both incomes.</p>
<p>Note also that your parents should file their tax returns consistent with which house you spent more nights in. Even if your mother is the custodial parent in the divorce decree, if you spent more nights with your father, he has to sign a Form 8332 if your mother claims you on her tax return - and your mother should not sign a Form 8332 if your father claims you on his return.</p>
<p>For taxes it doesn’t matter which house the student spends more time in. The deduction is governed by the divorce decree, assuming that which parent gets the deduction is addressed there.</p>
<p>For FAFSA it doesn’t matter who claims the child as a deduction on his or her taxes.</p>
<p>For taxes it most certainly does matter which house the student spends more time in. The IRS cares not one iota about your divorce decree. “Custodial” in the sense of IRC 152 does not mean “the one who has legal custody in the divorce decree.” It means “the one with whom the kid spent more nights.” See Reg Sec 1.152-4(d). No signed 8332, no exemption for the noncustodial parent; see <a href=“https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/InOpHistoric/Clinton.SUM.WPD.pdf[/url]”>https://www.ustaxcourt.gov/InOpHistoric/Clinton.SUM.WPD.pdf</a></p>
<p>If mom’s tax return indicates “kid lived with me,” and FAFSA indicates “kid lived with dad,” then someone has either perjured themselves on a tax return or perjured themselves on the FAFSA. Note that “kid lived with me” is not the same as “kid is my dependent.” The issue is not who claims the child as a dependent. The issue is making sure that the reporting follows the facts consistently.</p>
<p>allyphoe you’re correct about the IRS test for determination of a qualifying child.</p>
<p>It’s true that the 8332 must be filed for divorces after 2009, and that in general it does matter who the child spends more time with for the IRS. The rules for who can claim the child as an exception state that by default, the parent with whom the child spent more time is the parent who can claim the child as a dependent. This can be overridden by language in a divorce decree for divorces prior to 2009, or by a form 8332 for divorces after 2009. </p>
<p>My prior post assumed the non-default case, where the parents have an 8332 on file, but I wasn’t clear about that. Thanks for your additional information.</p>
<p>It seems like the divorce decree in your example wasn’t specific enough to be used as an alternative to the 8332.</p>
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<p>There can easily be cases where the divorce decree says that one parent is the custodial parent, the other is noncustodial but can claim the child as a dependent. The custodial parent signs the 8332 to make the written declaration to release the exemption to the noncustodial parent. The noncustodial parent claims the child on his taxes, the custodial parent files FAFSA.</p>
<p>In my own case, my ex claimed one child and I claimed the other on our taxes per our divorce agreement. I filed FAFSA for both as they lived with me.</p>
<p>[Publication</a> 504 (2012), Divorced or Separated Individuals](<a href=“http://www.irs.gov/publications/p504/ar02.html#en_US_2012_publink1000273723]Publication”>http://www.irs.gov/publications/p504/ar02.html#en_US_2012_publink1000273723)</p>
<p>Ally…I am not a tax expert. But I do know divorced parents who take turns declaring the kiddo as a dependent on the taxes. Both parent contribute equally to the child’s support. And yes, some years, the child’s permanent residence is with the parent who does not declare him on their taxes.</p>
<p>I’m hoping someone with some expertise in this area can clarify why this is able to happen.</p>
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<p>I think we must be talking past each other. As I said before, “kid lived with me” is not the same as “kid is my dependent.”</p>
<p>If the kid lived more nights with the dad and mom gets the dependency exemption, then mom should not include that kid on the line called “number of children on 6c who lived with you.” She should include that kid on the line called “did not live with you due to divorce or separation.”</p>
<p>(Pre-7/3/2008 decrees have to be very specific, and have to have the relevant pages, including signatures, attached to the non-custodial parent’s return.)</p>
<p>In your example, kid lives with dad therefore dad is custodial parent for FAFSA. Mom gets the dependency exemption. She lists the kid on line 6c and properly includes the kid in “did not live with you due to divorce or separation.” She has zero in the “number of children who lived with you”.</p>
<p>The kid is nowhere on the dad’s 1040 because the kid is mom’s dependent, not dad’s.</p>
<p>(I think we’re in agreement, by the way).</p>
<p>How it is done, I don’t know, but yes, the divorce decree with Form 8332 can stipulate which parent gets the kid(s) as dependents. See it all of the time that a non custodial parent gets an exemption. With two kids, it’s usually split regardless who has the custody, often so ieach parent gets the HOH benefits for taxes.</p>
<p>And, no, this is one part of the returns that do not have to match up with FAFSA. There are other things as well, but those dealing with FAFSA get that this can often be the case when there is a divorce situation. The FAFSA form does not follow the IRS exemptions, and has its own rules without exception that it is the parent who has the kid the most who is the custodial parent.</p>
<p>Returns have to match = returns and FAFSA should be consistent with each other about where the kid lives. So if, in this example, it’s dad’s year to claim the kid and the kid spent more nights with dad, the kid goes on the dad’s 1040 as “kid lived with me,” and no 8332.</p>
<p>No one is saying that the dependency exemption has to go to the custodial parent, for FAFSA or any other purposes. But if dad hasn’t historically been the custodial parent, and uses tax software or a paid professional, both of those will default to “dad wasn’t custodial last year, so isn’t custodial this year” unless dad goes to the effort of telling them that the kid spent more nights with him.</p>