Hello clueless,
You cannot use your partner's children for purposes of claiming the earned income credit. That only applies to a dependent that you can claim under the "qualifying child" rules.
A qualifying child is defined as a child who is related to you in one of the following ways:
the person must be your child, step child, adopted child, foster child, brother or sister, or a descendant of one of these (for example, a grandchild or nephew).
If you were married to this person then you could claim the children as your step children for purposes of the EIC, but since you are not married and these are not your biological children, they would not qualify for this purpose.
You may, however, still qualify to claim the children as your dependents under the "qualifying relative" rules. I realize the name "relative" implies that you would have to be related, but that is not the case, as long as the children live with you all year. If they live with you all year and you provide more than half of their support, you could claim them as dependents under the qualifying relative rules, but still not use them for purposes of calculating the EIC.
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Thank you clueless and let me know if you have more questions.
How can I ? Is there any way I can?
Hello again clueless,
Please clarify your question. Are you asking how you can claim the children as qualfiying relatives or if there is any way you can use them to claim the EIC?
As I tried to explain in my first post, there is no way you can claim the children for purposes of the earned income credit because they are not your biologicial children and they are not your step children. The only way you could claim them for this purpose would be if you were married to this person and the children were your step children by marriage.
You may be able to still claim them as dependents, but only if they live with you for the entire year and your provide more than half of their support, and the father does not claim the children. And while you could claim them as dependents, this would help reduce your taxable income, but the children could still not be used for purposes of claiming the EIC. They must be your own children or step children.
Thank you clueless
All I can tell you is what the law is. If there are people who are claiming children for purposes of the earned income credit, and the children are not their natural children or step children, then they are claiming them illegally. If the IRS ever finds out, they will make that person pay back any earned income refunds they received along with penalties and interest.
You can certainly claim the children for the earned income credit if you would like, but you are running the risk that the IRS will eventually find out and not only make you pay back all the money you received, but also penalties and interest.
Accountant
25+ years tax consulting. Specializing in returns for US citizens living abroad