Child support/taxes,?

Depending on the state you live in, yes. Also he is accruing a 10% penalty on all arrears which, if not paid can also result in having his wages garnished, his tax return confiscated, his drivers licsence revoked and liens put on any assets or properties.
Get a good family law attorney and have his wages garnished. I hope you are not relying on him for any good faith payments. You need to take total control of the situation and have the support order enforced by your attorney or local D.A.

Check your judgment paperwork.

In Florida, you have to ask for that to be included. A friend of mine just got an extra bonus tax return due to her deadbeat ex.

If he is claiming child support and didn’t pay for support, I think you might be able to report him to the IRS for fraud.
Check final judgement paperwork and get your lawyer involved.

I live in Ohio. My sister is the one that told me this..

Generally, IRS rules supersede state law, and the custodial parent is the one that can claim the child. Unless you give up your right to claim the child by signing the form that does this.

He should not be able to claim the child on his tax return, unless he has specific permission to do so. Also, part or all of his tax return may be intercepted to go toward paying the arrearage, depending on how much he owes.

I second @Seek_Kolinahr‘s advice. This should be clearly documented in the Divorce Decree. Ours specifically says even years are claimed by one parent, odd the other. Has nothing to do with who the child is physically living with or who pays support (in our case – the child has always lived with us, but the divorce decree allows the other parent to claim her on her taxes every other year even if that other parent has not physically or financially cared for the child) – it is entirely per the divorce decree.
You (or more specifically your sister) WILL run into trouble with the IRS if BOTH parents attempt to claim the same dependent in their separate tax filings. The IRS has software that checks the SS number of the dependent and rejects the e-filing if that SS number has already been submitted in another person’s return.
Getting a duplicate filing (e.g. if the incorrect parent claims the dependent on their tax return) can be a big, time consuming mess to clean up—and once again, the IRS will REQUIRE the parents to submit the divorce decree to determine who should have rightfully had the child listed as a dependent on their taxes.

What can happen, if a judgement has been made for Child Support and the father is in arrears (has not paid) his tax return can be (at least partially) seized and provided to the mother to cover unpaid child support. However, this is separate from and AFTER the filing is made..so if the decree specifies it’s the father’s year to claim his child as a dependent on his taxes, he still gets to do it—even if he owes back-payments or isn’t current on his child support.
Child Support enforcement can seize funds (unemployment payments, tax refunds, etc.) from a deadbeat dad (or mom) but they cannot change who gets to claim the dependent on their taxes per the decree.

Please don’t seek tax advice at a social message board. You’ve asked your question in a brief, single sentence, outside of the context of your own facts and circumstances. Nobody can advise you, responsibly and accurately, in this situation.

Ok…now that I’ve covered the disclaimer, I’ll provide some information (not advice, just information about federal income tax law).

The custodial parent claims a child as his/her dependent. A custodial parent may sign a written declaration—generally on Form 8332—that he/she will not claim the child as a dependent for the tax year. The noncustodial parent, who’s claiming the dependent, attaches a copy of the declaration to his/her return. Form 8332 matters are determined by the terms of the divorce or separation decree. But, the noncustodial parent needs a signed, valid declaration EVERY year to claim the child, regardless of a court order.

Failure to pay child support doesn’t affect who can or can’t claim the child as a dependent. This is federal law that disregards any state or local court ruling that makes claiming (or not claiming) the dependent conditional on payment (or nonpayment) of child support.