Antonio O. Neal - Page 11




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          was to blame for this error is both unconvincing and without                
          merit.9  It is the taxpayer’s duty, and not his return preparer’s           
          duty, to attach a valid Form 8332, or an equivalent written                 
          declaration, to the return at the time of filing; this failure              
          prohibits the taxpayer from claiming a dependency exemption                 
          deduction for his or her minor child.  See Presley v.                       
          Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1996-553.  Accordingly, we sustain                 
          respondent’s determination with respect to petitioner’s claimed             
          dependency exemption deduction for A.V.N. only.                             
          Head of Household Filing Status                                             
               Petitioner filed his 2003 return as head of household, and             
          respondent determined that petitioner’s filing status was married           
          filing separately in the notice of deficiency.  Respondent’s                
          determination was made on the ground that petitioner had not                
          sufficiently established that he was not married to Ms. Neal in             
          2003.                                                                       
               Section 1(b) imposes a special income tax rate on an                   
          individual filing as head of a household.  Section 2(b) provides            
          the requirements for head of household filing status.  As                   
          relevant here, to qualify as a head of household, a taxpayer must           
          (a) be unmarried at the end of the taxable year, (b) not be a               
          surviving spouse, and (c) maintain as the taxpayer’s home a                 


               9 Petitioner testified that he was not aware of the Form               
          8332 requirement until the time of trial.                                   





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