if you are paying for a medical insurance policy for the kids, 1/2 of the kids portion of the premiums are a deduction against your monthly child support amount or at least here in Alaska. Husband's employer withholds 150.00 a month for insurance, his child support will be reduced by a 75.00 credit for this. When we had custody, bio mom was under order to pay child support but she always worked under the table so we got a pittance. As custiodial parent we were responsible to take kids to Dr, submit to insurance and pay costs not covered by insurance. Child support order said non-custodial parent was to pay 1/2 of costs insurance did not cover. The bio mom NEVER paid for medical costs. For 7 years, we had to take her to court once a year with all the documents showing what her share should have been. She would say we never notified her and she had insurance, court would give her another 6 months to dick around. At the end of that 6 months she would not respond and we would get a lien against her and it would be added to child support she owed us. Each year we went thru the same stupid dance. Course we had court costs to pay each year and never could recoup attorney fees against her. But this is another gripe.

If you are paying medical costs or daycare costs or have the children under joint custody or they are in your home for a good number of days see an accountant or any other knowledgeable taxpreparer. Some parents contact an attorney and have the custody order changed; it is in the court order who gets to claim the children. If you are providing a substantional amount of their suport you might want to consider this.

Good Luck! We are just putting our heads down and tuffing it out until the youngest is 18! O -did you know in some states child support can continue after the child is 18 if they have not graduated from high school and are still attending? AWWWWWGGGGG

I live in MN and have been divorced for about 7 years. I have one daughter with my ex. It is in our decree that dad can claim our daughter on his taxes if his child support is paid in full on the last day of the year (December 31). Out of 6 years he could possibly claim her, he has only been paid in full 2 times. Last year (2006), he was behind under 40 dollars and this year (2007) under 15 dollars. I have 2 other children from previous relationships and I get to claim them both and my income isnt that big so the 3rd child really does not do anything for me. Last year he was lived that he could not claim her and I am sure we will have a problem again this year.

Good luck to all - check into this option in your state

Ok... I got a call from my tax accountant telling that my XXX filled taxes for the child credit that the court awarded me. I called her to complain. She told me that I only paid up to May of last year and that I didn't qualify for the credit. And that I needed to have paid for 6 months my girl friend say she was wrong. She looked at her records and found that the girls graduated in June of 2007 which is the sixth month of the year. She is a math teacher at a local high school... you get the picture. To make a long story short I've never missed a payment in 7 years, never missed a birthday, a school event and attended both graduations that where held on the same day from different schools. I’ll be calling the IRS on Tuesday morning and talking to my lawyer in the morning. I have move on with my life and plan to remarry in the fall on next year. I will always have my girls in my life we are all we have. Always treat people with respect when they fall short.

“Show up, Tell the truth, Pay attention, Do your best, don't be attached to the out come.”

This all is such a problem. My husband is in arrears on his child support, because he never even knew the kid existed until the child was 4 (he's now nearly 9). We're still catching up on all the payments I guess he should've been psychic to know to pay. We're on a payment schedule, and pay on time everytime. Yet, every year when it comes to tax season, there goes all our return. I know I should think of it as paying down what he owes, but I don't. We have a child together, and his ex gets the money we get for claiming OUR child, and she gets the money we should get for being married. We've come to terms that we have to pay back care, and now for the next ten years, but we feel to take the money we can claim for our child, and now the stimulus check, is just nuts. It would be nice if my husband's family he has now meant anything to anyone. Not just a child he never new existed.

my hubby pays his child support for twin boys who a dna test was never done, and he didnt not know they exsited til after they were a year old, they are now 8 he pays it she gets our taxes every year i have a son from a x and a daughte with my husband and some how his x is getting all our taxes what can we do this is not right she is getting my sons child tax credit, i am so mad she is getting almost $5000 my husband is in teh army we dont make much and his ex makes $25 and hour and we pay for medical for teh kids not her, she gets so much and we get f'd over does anyone knwo what we can do to take this to court for him to get a dna test done, we are in texas right now and the mother is in florida. we are so lost and need some help?