Las Vegas Divorce Attorneys Identify Seven Tax Filing Errors That Cost Clark County Families Thousands — and How to Avoid Them Before April 15
LAS VEGAS, March 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — With tax season in full effect, Gastelum Attorneys — a Las Vegas-based family law firm with eight attorneys and more than 5,000 family law cases handled since 2018 — is alerting Clark County residents that divorce, custody changes, and separation agreements create tax consequences that many filers fail to anticipate, and that mistakes in these areas can trigger IRS audits, penalties, and family court disputes.
The firm has identified seven high-risk areas where divorced, separated, and divorcing Nevada residents most commonly make errors when filing their federal and state returns — errors that in some cases result in both spouses claiming the same child, wrongly deducting alimony, or unknowingly accepting liability for a spouse’s unreported income by filing jointly during a pending divorce.
“Your divorce decree and the IRS operate by different rules. Many clients are shocked to learn that what their divorce agreement says about tax exemptions means nothing to the IRS without the right form attached to the right return. These are not complicated problems to fix — but they need to be addressed before you file, not after.”
— Jennifer Gastelum, Managing Attorney, Gastelum Attorneys
At the center of the firm’s tax season advisory is the dependency exemption dispute — a frequently litigated issue in which both parents claim the same child on their returns. Under IRS rules, the custodial parent — defined as the parent with whom the child lived the greater number of nights during the tax year — is entitled to the dependency exemption and Child Tax Credit by default. This IRS default overrides most divorce decree language unless a signed IRS Form 8332 transferring the right to the non-custodial parent is attached to that parent’s return. Gastelum Attorneys‘ Las Vegas child custody lawyers regularly handle post-decree disputes involving tax exemption conflicts and parenting plan modifications.
“Both parents filing for the same child is one of the most common post-divorce tax problems we see turn into a family court matter,” said Gastelum. “When it happens, the parent who filed first typically retains the credit. The other faces a disallowed return, an amended filing requirement, and in many cases, a contempt motion.”
Seven Key Issues Identified by Gastelum Attorneys
- Filing status is determined on December 31 — not when divorce proceedings began. A divorce not finalized by year-end means legal married status for the entire tax year.
- Only one parent can claim each child — the IRS default is the custodial parent; the right must be formally transferred via Form 8332.
- The alimony deduction was permanently eliminated in 2019 — for divorces finalized after December 31, 2018, neither the payer nor the recipient has a tax consequence on spousal support. Learn more about Nevada spousal support laws.
- Child support is completely tax-neutral — it cannot be deducted by the payer or reported as income by the recipient, regardless of when the divorce occurred.
- Property transfers carry hidden tax consequences — assets received in a divorce settlement, including the family home and retirement accounts, transfer their original cost basis, creating future capital gains exposure. See how Nevada property division works under NRS 123.220.
- 401(k) and pension division requires a QDRO — a Qualified Domestic Relations Order must be executed correctly or the distribution becomes fully taxable with a 10% early withdrawal penalty.
- Filing jointly during a pending divorce creates joint liability — a spouse’s unreported income, hidden assets, or underpaid taxes become the shared responsibility of both parties on a joint return.
The advisory also highlights a lesser-known provision that benefits qualifying single parents: Head of Household filing status, which carries a lower tax rate and higher standard deduction than Single status. To qualify, the parent must have paid more than half of household costs and had a qualifying child living with them for more than half the year. Gastelum notes that this filing status is frequently overlooked and that only one parent per household can claim it in a given year.
For Nevada residents navigating tax season in the context of a divorce or custody matter, Gastelum Attorneys offers case evaluations by phone or in person at its Las Vegas office at 718 S 8th Street. The firm provides services in English and Spanish and serves clients across Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, and Summerlin.
About Gastelum Attorneys
Gastelum Attorneys is a Las Vegas family law firm founded in 2018 by Managing Attorney Jennifer Gastelum, a UNLV criminal justice graduate and Boyd School of Law J.D. The firm practices exclusively in Nevada family law — including divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support, and property division — in Clark County’s Eighth Judicial District Court. With eight attorneys and more than 5,000 cases handled, the firm serves the greater Las Vegas Valley in both English and Spanish.
Website: gastelumattorneys.com | Spanish: gastelumattorneysespanol.com
Phone: (702) 979-1455 | Address: 718 S 8th Street, Las Vegas, NV 89101
Media Contact
Jennifer Gastelum, Managing Attorney
(702) 979-1455; Jeremy Setters jeremy@gastelumattorneys.com
https://gastelumattorneys.com/; gastelumattorneys.com/contact
Mon–Fri 9am–5pm • English & Spanish • Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas
Gastelum Attorneys is a Las Vegas family law firm founded in 2018 by Managing Attorney Jennifer Gastelum, a Boyd School of Law J.D. and UNLV graduate. The firm practices exclusively in Nevada family law — including divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support, and property division — in Clark County’s Eighth Judicial District Court. With eight attorneys and more than 5,000 cases handled, Gastelum Attorneys serves clients throughout Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, and Summerlin in both English and Spanish. For more information, visit gastelumattorneys.com or call (702) 979-1455.
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