Question

William and Charlotte Collins divorced in November of Year 1. William moved out and Charlotte remained in their house with their 10-month-old daughter, Autumn. Diana, Charlotte's mother, lived in the home and acted as Autumn's nanny for all of Year 1. William provided 70 percent of Autumn's support, Diana provided 20 percent, and Charlotte provided 10 percent. When the time came to file their tax returns for Year 1, William, Charlotte, and Diana each wanted to claim Autumn as a dependent. Their respective adjusted gross incomes for Year 1 were $50,000, $35,000, and $52,000. Who has priority to claim Autumn as a dependent

Answer 1

Answer:

Charlotte has the priority to claim Autumn as her dependent even though William covered 70% of her living expenses during the year. In order for a parent to be able to claim a child as a dependent, he/she must live with the child for more than half the year. In this case, since William left the house, Charlotte has preference over claiming Autumn as her dependent (even though William lived with Autumn for 10 months). Also, a parent always has priority over other relatives including a grandparent.