tax/kids question

cookiemonster03

so I'm working on our taxes (and it is harder than usual since C works in NJ but we live in PA, so I have to do a federal faux return as well to base NJ on due to the civil union law, but that's anohter post)...

 I was thinking - for those of you who have adopted your partners kids so you're both legal parents ... how do you claim them? Everything I read says you have to provide more than half their support (I'm talking federal here), so I don't know how you'd split it. Do you just claim them on the return where tis more profitable?

ctbride08

cookiemonster03:

Do you just claim them on the return where its more profitable?

this is what was suggested to us (we couldn't claim the kids this year, but will likely be able to next year).  Basically, we will treat it similarly to the house deductions - claim it on the return that yields the best financial outcome (which in our case has always been the person who makes more $).

Two*True

Exactly.  Whichever return yields the best results will be the one that shows the child.

2brides

We each take a child. Since we aren't legally married, we can both take out money for dependent flex spending - so we take a child and claim their preschool money and the kid.

cookiemonster03

2brides:

We each take a child. Since we aren't legally married, we can both take out money for dependent flex spending - so we take a child and claim their preschool money and the kid.

Really?? wow. That's kind of cool. Since that'd federal it wouldn't be different in states where you marriage is recognized I bet.

2brides

cookiemonster03:

2brides:

We each take a child. Since we aren't legally married, we can both take out money for dependent flex spending - so we take a child and claim their preschool money and the kid.

Really?? wow. That's kind of cool. Since that'd federal it wouldn't be different in states where you marriage is recognized I bet.

 

I am not sure - since it is federal benefit and state marriages don't affect fed benefits.