Taxes

[C&G'sMama]

Ah, it's tax time. Anticpating that refund. The child tax credit (why else would we have kids?). Oh wait a minute. As Head of Household I limit out of the tax credit. If I were married in the eyes of the law our limitation would be higher and we'd have another $2,000 coming back. But since we're not....


If we were "married" we wouldn't have to think about much DP makes. She's basically a SAHM but if she makes over x and less than y it costs us money. Oh and there's being taxed on her health benefits and that we can't do HCRA for her.

That's my rant.

 

[PghLybrt]

I so am with you!
Rant away!

 

[TinkerChelle]

DITTO! Totally makes me crazy and don't get me started on the fact that I have to pay for an adoption-the adoption of my OWN son!

 

[C&G'sMama]

DITTO! Totally makes me crazy and don't get me started on the fact that I have to pay for an adoption-the adoption of my OWN son!

Us too. The best part was having to have a social worker come in both times for a home visit. Yes, I feel very fortunate that NY has 2nd parent adoption laws, but on the other hand if we were married, it wouldn't be an issue.

 

[Ava]

Us too. The best part was having to have a social worker come in both times for a home visit. Yes, I feel very fortunate that NY has 2nd parent adoption laws, but on the other hand if we were married, it wouldn't be an issue.

We are going through this now. I'm 2nd parent adopting DD, we have our home visit with the social worker on Friday. The part that shocked us the most was that my partner, who GAVE BIRTH to DD, had to go through all the same background checks, etc that I did. When we got the list of stuff we had to do/provide, and it said she had to do all of it too, we called our lawyer because we thought maybe something got mixed up and they didn't realize Julie is DD's birth mother. But nope, she has to have the background checks too. Which makes no sense to me, but obviously we have no choice but to follow the procedure. I will never forget going down to One Police Plaza (yes, like in Law & Order - that part was exciting to me) to be fingerprinted, with Julie with the baby who was maybe 2 months old at the time in her Moby wrap. Thankfully she slept the whole time, since it took forever; we had to go through security, sign in, take a number, wait for our number to be called, pay, wait some more, get fingerprinted, wait some more while they print out the cards... it took over an hour to get done because of all the waiting.

 

[C&G'sMama]

Ava
Wow, I don't remember getting finger printed (I'm birth mom). I remember going down to the police station for DP to get fingerprinted. That was back in 2000. When we had the adoption for DS 3 years later I don't think we had to go through as much.

I remember when the process was fairly new too. Back in maybe 1995 I know of two couples here that paved the way for the rest of us. I don't remember if it was just Monroe County or the state, but I remember it being a big deal.

Oh and Congratulations!!! That's is so exciting.

 

[Ava]

C&G'sMama, yup we both had to get fingerprinted. DP also had to provide her previous addresses going back 28 years so she could be run through the National Child Abuse Registry (or whatever it's called), same as me. Thank goodness her mom still lives in the same area where she grew up, because they moved around to different rentals for a couple years after her parents divorce. Her mom actually drove past the places they'd lived to write down the house numbers because she couldn't remember them. Such a pain in the rear to get everything together. Obviously it will all be worth it when it's done and she's legally mine forever, but that day cannot come soon enough. After that I do not want to talk to an adoption lawyer or DCFS again... until it's time to do this for the next one.

 

[copperhound]

Hi! New here -- just wanted to chime in that the differential income limit for the child tax credit really irks me. At the very least, it should be the same for married and head of household. It's not like it's cheaper for a single person to raise a child than a married person. If anything, it's more expensive!

My income is down this year - no year-end bonuses, so hopefully I will qualify this time!

For those of you adopting, do 2nd parent adoptions qualify for the federal adoption tax credit?

 

[Hydani]

I hope you guys in America get country-wide same-sex marriage laws. It would be a great feeling to have all of North America legalize it.

 

[C&G'sMama]

Hi! New here -- just wanted to chime in that the differential income limit for the child tax credit really irks me. At the very least, it should be the same for married and head of household. It's not like it's cheaper for a single person to raise a child than a married person. If anything, it's more expensive!

My income is down this year - no year-end bonuses, so hopefully I will qualify this time!

For those of you adopting, do 2nd parent adoptions qualify for the federal adoption tax credit?

Find a tax professional or a tax attorney that specializes in this area. I am of the opinion that you can't, but I tend to err on the side of caution, and I believe there are other schools of thought out there on this matter. I don't know if it's ever been challenged on audit So again, I would consult with someone that has some expertise in this area.

 

[copperhound]

oh, I"m not second parent adopting.... I'm really, truly single. I just wondered since others were talking about having to pay for the adoption.

I got the tax credit when I adopted my daughter in 2006, and I'd like to believe that it would more than cover the cost of a 2nd parent adoption. However, I wasn't sure if a 2nd parent adoption qualified.

 

[Ava]

oh, I"m not second parent adopting.... I'm really, truly single. I just wondered since others were talking about having to pay for the adoption.

I got the tax credit when I adopted my daughter in 2006, and I'd like to believe that it would more than cover the cost of a 2nd parent adoption. However, I wasn't sure if a 2nd parent adoption qualified.

I would think it does. After all, I am adopting DD - regardless of who her birth mother is, I am still adopting her and paying all of the fees that go along with that.

I ran the numbers for the adoption credit when I was doing my taxes this year (even though my adoption isn't final so I can't claim it until next year) and it doesn't really look like it will benefit me anyway. Now that I am claiming DD & DP as dependents & can file as head of household, my tax liability is low. I'm getting a nice refund this year, since I never adjusted my witholdings, and plan to adjust them now so I'll hopefully break even next year. My employer has an adoption assistance program that will reimburse up to $5000 to help cover adoption costs, so I think it will work out better for me to do that.

 

[DOPEYLUVER]

I live in Massachusetts where same sex marriage has been law for a few years. With marriage being recognized in the state, but not federally there are some different tax issues. Anyway, in I have a friend who is a CPA and one of the things her firm specializes in is GBLT tax issues. If anyone needs help with this stuff, PM me and I can give you the name of her firm.