[tylito]

Tax laws are complicated. Just because he has a son does not mean that he gets tax money for the child. First the child has to have a valid social security number. Second he has to provide more than half the child's support. So if he does claim the child and is providing more than half of the child's support in monthly child support payments, and you will not be filing a US tax return, then that money is his. He worked for it and payed the tax, he is getting a refund of his own money that was overpaid. However if he does claim the child and is not providing more than half of the childs support, then he may be in big trouble with the IRS if he ever gets audited. And please don't think that he is getting rich off of child tax credits. The credit in 2004 is only one thousand dollars per child if he qualifies, it used to be six hundred dollars. I don't think that he would be stupid enough to defraud the IRS for so little money. To qualify for any additional child tax credit, the child has to be a resident of dad's US home for more than six months a year and dad has to be considered as a low income worker, earning less than $30,000 per year. Either way his tax refund is not your money unless you two are married and you work to overpay taxes and you both file a joint return. You can't force him to give it to you. I know that the child is half yours, but if he did not claim the child then he would have to give that money to the IRS. If anyone is getting cheated it is the IRS. His tax refund is between him and the IRS. If you do no get child support, sue him or it get a court order and sent it to child support enforcement in the county where he lives in California.