Looking Forward

Making a better life for me and my kids

Archive for the tag “support”

18 Jan 2013
11 Comments

Tax Time!

 
In 2011, I filed my taxes for 2010, as we all did. X declared he would be claiming both the kids. I did not claim them, for fear of getting in trouble with the IRS. I ended up paying in close to 2k in taxes. Single parent. One income. No support. I begged him for financial help to pay the electric and the cable he’d strapped me with. NO. No help. He can’t afford it. Though, I knew he’d gotten his tax money back – close to 7k. Whatever. My parents helped me pay my debt. They are amazing. 
 
Later that year he came back to Maine, took A for 6 weeks, and refused to return him.
I went to talk to a lawyer while he still had A to ask how to best remedy this vague divorce decree. He gave his advice, then asked, “Do you want to play hardball?” 
My husband, who was with me said “YES!” 
The lawyer went on to ask me about why I didn’t claim the kids on my taxes. I told him that X said he was going to, and that I didn’t want to get in trouble. He reread the divorce. He said, “there is no agreement here. Is there another agreement about this anywhere?” No. “Did you sign anything else?” No. “You’re positive?” Yes.
He gave me the business card for his accountant, told me to mention his name when I made my appointment, and said that the accountant would help to take care of it. 
 
I made the appointment, I mentioned the lawyers name and I got, not some intern or ‘associate’, I got the guy whose name was on the building. 
He looked over my stuff, took some notes and told me he’d take care of it. A week later his office called, charged me 85 dollars and handed me an envelope of all my stuff. He said the IRS does NOT like it when people do what the X did. Its a big no-no. He also said the IRS would take care of getting back the money they’d given him.
It might take a long while, there might be more correspondence. But, in the end, I was entitled to a refund. In November I got a refund check for a little over 5k.
 
Last year, I filed taxes for 2011. I claimed the kids. I got a refund. No issues. 
 
This year, we’re anxiously awaiting our w-2s so we can file our taxes. I count on that refund. As most people in my position do. Then 2 weeks ago, I get this: 
 
From: X
To: Me
Sent: Friday, January 4, 2013 9:54 PM
Subject: Taxes

Per our agreement to alternate years, I am claiming the boys on my tax return this year.

 

I didn’t know how to respond. I had to pay a lawyer and an accountant to explain the IRS rules to me about this kind of thing. I’m not going to give him all the information that I have for free.
Even if I did tell him, “No, you can’t.” Or “Its illegal”. Or “There is no agreement” It would only instigate an argument and lead to more bullshit, and there is no way to know if he’d still try to claim them anyway. So, I didn’t respond at all. Legally, the kids are mine to claim. Nothing he does or says is going to change that. 

What I’ve read about this is that if two people try to claim the same kids, we will both be audited and made to prove with whom the kids lived the majority of the time. This can take a long time to sort out. But, in the end, they live with me, 365 days a year. They are mine to claim. If I have to wait for my refund, so be it. I’d rather have it that way than have to deal with him for any reason. 

 

 

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