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A doctor determines the condition has las­ ted or can be expected to last continuously for at least a year or can lead to death. Residency Test To meet this test, your child must have lived with you for more than half the year. There are exceptions for temporary absences, children who were born or died during the year, kidnap­ ped children, and children of divorced or sepa­ rated parents. Temporary absences. Your child is consid­ ered to have lived with you during periods of time when one of you, or both, are temporarily absent due to special circumstances such as: Illness, Education, Business, Vacation, or Military service. Death or birth of child. A child who was born or died during the year is treated as having lived with you more than half the year if your home was the child's home more than half the time he or she was alive during the year. The same is true if the child lived with you more than half the year except for any required hospital stay fol­ lowing birth. Child born alive. You may be able to claim an exemption for a child born alive during the year, even if the child lived only for a moment. State or local law must treat the child as having been born alive. There must be proof of a live birth shown by an official document, such as a birth certificate. The child must be your qualify­ ing child or qualifying relative, and all the other tests to claim an exemption for a dependent must be met. Stillborn child. You cannot claim an ex­ emption for a stillborn child. Kidnapped child. You can treat your child as meeting the residency test even if the child has been kidnapped, but both of the following state­ ments must be true. 1. The child is presumed by law enforcement authorities to have been kidnapped by someone who is not a member of your family or the child's family. 2. In the year the kidnapping occurred, the child lived with you for more than half of the part of the year before the date of the kidnapping. This treatment applies for all years until the earliest of: 1. The year the child is returned, 2. The year there is a determination that the child is dead, or 3. The year the child would have reached age 18. Children of divorced or separated parents (or parents who live apart). In most cases, because of the residency test, a child of di­ vorced or separated parents is the qualifying child of the custodial parent. However, the child will be treated as the qualifying child of the non­ custodial parent if all four of the following state­ ments are true. 1. The parents: a. Are divorced or legally separated un­ der a decree of divorce or separate maintenance, b. Are separated under a written separa­ tion agreement, or c. Lived apart at all times during the last 6 months of the year, whether or not they are or were married. 2. The child received over half of his or her support for the year from the parents. 3. The child is in the custody of one or both parents for more than half of the year. 4. Either of the following statements is true. a. The custodial parent signs a written declaration, discussed later, that he or she will not claim the child as a de­ pendent for the year, and the noncus­ todial parent attaches this written dec­ laration to his or her return. (If the decree or agreement went into effect after 1984 and before 2009, see Post-1984 and pre-2009 divorce de- cree or separation agreement, later. If the decree or agreement went into ef­ fect after 2008, see Post-2008 divorce decree or separation agreement, later.) b. A pre­1985 decree of divorce or sepa­ rate maintenance or written separa­ tion agreement that applies to 2014 states that the noncustodial parent can claim the child as a dependent, the decree or agreement was not changed after 1984 to say the non­ custodial parent cannot claim the child as a dependent, and the non­ custodial parent provides at least $600 for the child's support during the year. Custodial parent and noncustodial pa- rent. The custodial parent is the parent with whom the child lived for the greater number of nights during the year. The other parent is the noncustodial parent. If the parents divorced or separated during the year and the child lived with both parents before the separation, the custodial parent is the one with whom the child lived for the greater number of nights during the rest of the year. A child is treated as living with a parent for a night if the child sleeps: At that parent's home, whether or not the parent is present, or In the company of the parent, when the child does not sleep at a parent's home (for example, the parent and child are on vaca­ tion together). Equal number of nights. If the child lived with each parent for an equal number of nights during the year, the custodial parent is the pa­ rent with the higher adjusted gross income (AGI). December 31. The night of December 31 is treated as part of the year in which it begins. For example, December 31, 2014, is treated as part of 2014. Emancipated child. If a child is emancipa­ ted under state law, the child is treated as not living with either parent. See Examples 5 and 6. Absences. If a child was not with either pa­ rent on a particular night (because, for example, the child was staying at a friend's house), the child is treated as living with the parent with whom the child normally would have lived for that night, except for the absence. But if it can­ not be determined with which parent the child normally would have lived or if the child would not have lived with either parent that night, the child is treated as not living with either parent that night. Parent works at night. If, due to a parent's nighttime work schedule, a child lives for a greater number of days, but not nights, with the parent who works at night, that parent is treated as the custodial parent. On a school day, the child is treated as living at the primary resi­ dence registered with the school. Example 1—child lived with one parent for a greater number of nights. You and your child’s other parent are divorced. In 2014, your child lived with you 210 nights and with the other parent 155 nights. You are the custodial parent. Example 2—child is away at camp. In 2014, your daughter lives with each parent for alternate weeks. In the summer, she spends 6 weeks at summer camp. During the time she is at camp, she is treated as living with you for 3 weeks and with her other parent, your ex­spouse, for 3 weeks because this is how long she would have lived with each parent if she had not attended summer camp. Example 3—child lived same number of nights with each parent. Your son lived with you 180 nights during the year and lived the same number of nights with his other parent, your ex­spouse. Your AGI is $40,000. Your ex­spouse's AGI is $25,000. You are treated as your son's custodial parent because you have the higher AGI. Example 4—child is at parent’s home but with other parent. Your son normally lives with you during the week and with his other pa­ rent, your ex­spouse, every other weekend. You become ill and are hospitalized. The other parent lives in your home with your son for 10 consecutive days while you are in the hospital. Your son is treated as living with you during this 10­day period because he was living in your home. Example 5—child emancipated in May. When your son turned age 18 in May 2014, he became emancipated under the law of the state where he lives. As a result, he is not considered in the custody of his parents for more than half of the year. The special rule for children of di­ vorced or separated parents does not apply. Page 14 Publication 501 (2014)