claiming child of divorce as a dependent

[JimKutkowski]

I would only claim one as that is what my 1040 shows.

1040 sometimes fluctuates on a yearly basis and our local trustees understand that. We have been able to claim one child when there is 50%+ support paid for two with no problem from our local trustee, and PAEB is one of the toughest.

Thank you for the blog ideas gents & ladies.

[James Chinn]

Try to qualify without any dependents and if necessary, you can probably get away with one dependent. Does your contribution to the welfare of the children equal at least 50%?

I would only claim one as that is what my 1040 shows.

Is that 50% in addition to child support? Besides the child support I do split the cost for parochial school, buy some clothes, provide about half the meals, and pay for some entertainment and activities as well as split the cost for summer camp,
half the transportation back and forth to activities and school as well as take them on at least one vacation a year. I also am required to pay for half of any medical bills after my wife pays the first $400 every year.

[JimKutkowski]

Try to qualify without any dependents and if necessary, you can probably get away with one dependent. Does your contribution to the welfare of the children equal at least 50%?

[James Chinn]

I have been divorced since October of 2011. My ex and I have two children. She has physical custody but we share joint legal custody. Our divorce decree states that we can each claim one child as a dependent on our tax return. Since I claimed my oldest (15) on my 2011 return, can I count her as a dependent for the means test and on the required forms to determine eligibility for a chapter 7?