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Asked 11 months ago - Salem, OR
FlagMother and child reside in Salem, Oregon while father (paying child support) lives in Las Vegas, NV. Mother has never worked thus she has never contributed any financial support for child. However, mother has allowed her mother (child's grandmother) to claim child on her annual income tax even though child does not reside with grandmother... is that legal?
You didn't say what state originally issued the child support order. The support order should state until what age support payments must be made.
If it was issued in Oregon while Oregon had jurisdiction over all the parties, then I would expect the support order language would include paying support to a child attending school as defined under Oregon Statute, until that child reaches age 21 (assuming they stay in school). This language would need to be in the order. Once the child turns 18 the court can modify the order to make the payments to the child instead of the parent.
The text is too long to paste in here but you can read what constitutes a child attending school under Oregon Law here: http://www.oregonlaws.org/ors/107.108. You will note that the child does not have to be in school year round to get support so if your child declares their intent to go on in school after high school you have to pay the support during the summer break.
If the support order was issued by another state it may not have the same duration, ie to age 21 and may not be subject to being extension if Oregon never had jurisdiction over the parent paying the support.
The IRS publishes publications that explains who can deduct a child for tax purposes and other deductions related to married and divorce people. Read these:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p501/index.html
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p504/index.html
Who can deduct a child is based on the IRS rules. Keep in mind that there are other tax credits related to children that have their own rules besides the standard deduction for a dependent. A parent can assign her deduction to the other parent using a form filed with the IRS.
The State of Oregon defines the age of emancipation as 18 years old or 21 years old if attending school half-time or more.
In Oregon, child support is automatically terminated at 18 years of age if not addressed in the court order for support. The date of the court order does impact what law is applied, as revisions have been made to the statute. Beneficiaries that qualify as a "child attending school" under ORS 107.108 have different requirements based on whether the most recent Oregon child support order or a modification was entered before or after 10/4/1997. For child support orders dated prior to 10/4/1997, the child must be attending school at least half-time. For child support orders dated on or after 10/4/1997, the child must be attending school at least half-time, maintain a "C" grade average or better, and submit compliance documents within 30 days from the start of each term or semester. Also, for orders dated on or after 10/4/1997, a prorated share of the support is paid directly to the child based on the number of children for whom support is ordered.
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