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declaration entitling him to one or both of the dependency
exemption deductions. In the statutory notice of deficiency,
respondent disallowed the dependency exemption deductions and the
earned income credit in full.
The first issue for decision is whether petitioner is
entitled to dependency exemption deductions for Lamani and LaKim.
A deduction generally is allowed for each dependent of a
taxpayer. Sec. 151(a), (c)(1). As a general rule, a child of a
taxpayer is a dependent of the taxpayer only if the taxpayer
provides over half of the child’s support for the taxable year.
Sec. 152(a). A special rule applies to taxpayer-parents who are
divorced, who are separated, or who live separately for at least
the last 6 months of the calendar year, but who have custody of
the child for more than half of the year and who together provide
over half of the child’s support. Sec. 152(e)(1). Under this
rule, the parent with custody of the child for the greater
portion of the year (the “custodial parent”) generally is treated
as having provided over half of the child’s support, regardless
of which parent actually provided the support. Id.; sec. 1.152-
4(b), Income Tax Regs. An exception to this special rule exists
which entitles the noncustodial parent to the dependency
exemption deduction. Sec. 152(e)(2). For the exception to
apply, the custodial parent must sign a written declaration
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Last modified: May 25, 2011