When to use Form 8332
Key Takeaways
- Form 8332 is used by the custodial parent to release their right to claim a child as a dependent to the noncustodial parent. This lets the noncustodial parent claim the child as a dependent on their tax return.
- To claim the child as a dependent, the parent must be eligible. Typically, this means the child lives with you for more than half the year, but this requirement can be waived in certain cases.
- To complete Form 8332, the custodial parent must provide the child's name, the tax year, their Social Security number, and their signature and date.
- The custodial parent can revoke a previous release of the exemption claim by completing part three of Form 8332. This revocation takes effect in the tax year following the year the form is provided to you.
If you have custody of your child but want to release the right to claim your child as a dependent to the noncustodial parent, you’ll need to fill out Form 8332. All that’s needed is your child's name, the tax year, your Social Security number, then your signature and date. If you prefer to release your claim for more than one tax year, enter the same information in part two rather than part one. You also use the form to revoke a previous release of a claim.
Once complete, give the form to your child's noncustodial parent, not the IRS. They will file it with their tax return. If you release your claim for multiple tax years, you only need to fill out the form once: the other parent will attach copies of the original to their return each year.
Noncustodial parent must be eligible
The child's noncustodial parent must be eligible to claim the child as a dependent. The rules for claiming a dependent usually require the parent to live with the child for more than half the year. This rule can be waived when the parents are divorced, separated or live apart from each other.
For this waiver to apply, more than half of the money needed to support your child must come from you and the noncustodial parent. In addition, your child must not live with anyone other than you and the noncustodial parent for more than six months of the year. Therefore, if your child's noncustodial parent isn't eligible, giving them a completed Form 8332 doesn't change the fact that they can't claim the child.
TurboTax Tip:
By releasing the claim, the custodial parent gives up not only the ability to claim the dependent, but also most associated tax benefits, like the child tax credit, which is only available to you if you claim the child as a dependent.
What you give up with Form 8332
Giving the completed Form 8332 to the noncustodial parent gives up more than just a dependent. For example, additional child tax credits are only available to the person who claims the child as a dependent.
Taking your child dependency claim back
As the custodial parent, if you decide to start claiming your child as a dependent again after you’ve released it to the noncustodial parent, you can do so by completing part three of Form 8332. You can do this for the specific tax years you list or write “all future years.” Reclaiming the dependency isn't effective until the tax year after the calendar year in which you provide your child's noncustodial parent with Form 8332. In other words, if you provide the form in 2024, the earliest you can reclaim the dependent is on your 2025 tax return which you will file in 2026.
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