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Your child and dependent care expenses must be for the care of one or more qualifying persons. A qualifying person is:· Your qualifying child who is your dependent and who was under age 13 when the care was provided (but see Note later),
· Your spouse who was physically or mentally not able to care for himself or herself and lived with you for more than half the year, or
· A person who was physically or mentally not able to care for himself or herself, lived with you for more than half the year, and either:
a. Was your dependent, or
b. Would have been your dependent except that:
I. He or she received gross income of $3,400 or more,
II. He or she filed a joint return, or
III. You, or your spouse if filing jointly, could be claimed as a dependent on someone else's 2007 return.
Dependent defined - A dependent is a person, other than you or your spouse, for whom you can claim an exemption. To be your dependent, a person must be your qualifying child (or your qualifying relative).
Qualifying child - To be your qualifying child, a child must live with you for more than half the year and meet other requirements.
Person qualifying for part of year - You determine a person's qualifying status each day. For example, if the person for whom you pay child and dependent care expenses no longer qualifies on September 16, count only those expenses through September 15. Also see Yearly limit under Dollar Limit, later.
Taxpayer identification number - You must include on your return the name and taxpayer identification number (generally the social security number) of the qualifying person(s). If the correct information is not shown, the credit may be reduced or disallowed.
Adoption taxpayer identification number (ATIN) - If your qualifying person is a child who was placed in your home for adoption and for whom you do not have an SSN, you must get an ATIN for the child. File Form W-7A, Application for Taxpayer Identification Number for Pending U.S. Adoptions.
Child of divorced or separated parents or parents living apart. Even if you cannot claim your child as a dependent, he or she is treated as your qualifying person if:
· The child was under age 13 or was physically or mentally not able to care for himself or herself,
· The child received over half of his or her support during the calendar year from one or both parents who are divorced or legally separated under a decree of divorce or separate maintenance, are separated under a written separation agreement, or lived apart at all times during the last six months of the calendar year,
· The child was in the custody of one or both parents for more than half the year, and
· You were the child's custodial parent (the parent with whom the child lived for the greater part of 2007).
The non-custodial parent cannot treat the child as a qualifying person even if that parent is entitled to claim the child as a dependent under the special rules for a child of divorced or separated parents.
Back to: Child and dependent care credit index
Other sections to read about child care credit: Child and Dependant Care Credit, Qualifying Person Test, Earned Income Test, Qualified Expenses, Child and Dependent care expenses - examples
Taken from IRS Publication 503 also see IRS Publication 501
