And this judge did use the proper considerations. So custody remains with the father. It's tax time, and that means time to figure out who claims the exemptions. Although the IRS has rules for most things, this is one place where you get to choose. You and your spouse can usually decide between you which of you will claim the exemption.
People usually decide to give the tax exemption to the spouse who has custody most of the time.
However, an alternative that makes better sense financially is to give the exemption to the spouse who gets the most tax benefit. You can save hundreds of dollars a year in taxes, and you can then arrange to share that gain between you. Typically, the higher earning spouse is the one who gets the most tax benefit. For more information click here . For the Split-Up planner, which covers much more detail, and allows you to develop a detailed financial plan and get control of the financial aspect, while learning all you need to know about divorce finances, click here .