Q: My soon to be ex-wife has been skimming money from our tax refunds for a few years now. Any legal options to recover it?
I am in the process of going through a divorce. I found out that my wife has been skimming $2500 a year off of our tax returns for several years. We each have our own children from previous marriages. When confronted she claimed that she was entitled to do this because of her daughter's $2500 AOTC college tax credit. We have separate bank accounts and we each pay for our own expenses, including our own children's expenses. All housing, food, utilities and insurance expenses were/are split equally and anything specific was paid for by whoever it was for. She has been taking advantage of my child's $3500 child tax credit the whole time with no additional money going to me for it. I should also mention that she lied to me, in writing, about taking the money. She told me that our refund was $2500 less than what we actually received. Do I have any legal options to recover any of the money?
A: Through your divorce, possibly. But as to the IRS, the money is as much hers as it is yours.
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