Can Two People Claim the Same Dependent?

No — only one taxpayer can claim a dependent in any given tax year, and if two people claim the same child, the IRS will ask both to prove their eligibility. The IRS uses tiebreaker rules to resolve conflicts: if both taxpayers are parents, the child lives with the parent they spent more nights with; if nights are equal, the parent with the higher AGI wins. Divorced or separated parents can use Form 8332 to release the right to claim the child to the non-custodial parent for a specific year. When parents alternate claiming a child, each should confirm who is claiming the child before filing to avoid rejections and IRS letters.