Special Rules for Qualifying Child of More Than One Person

Sometimes a child meets the rules to be a qualifying child of more than one person.

However, only one person can treat that child as a qualifying child and claim the EIC using that child.

If two or more taxpayers have the same qualifying child, they can choose which of them will claim the credit using that child. If more than one taxpayer actually claims the credit using the same child, the IRS will apply the tie-breaker rules.

When More Than One Person Claims EIC Using Same Child (Tie-Breaker Rule.)
IF more than one person claims the EIC using the same child and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	THEN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Only one of the persons is the child's parent	Only the parent can treat the child as a qualifying child.
Two of the persons are the child's parent, and they do not file a joint return together	Only the parent with whom the child lived the longest during the year can treat the child as a qualifying child.
Two of the persons are the child's parent, the child lived with each parent the same amount of time during the year, and the parents do not file a joint return together	Only the parent with the highest adjusted gross income (AGI) can treat the child as a qualifying child.
None of the persons are the child's parent	Only the person with an AGI greater than the highest AGI of either parent can treat the child as a qualifying child.