<prompt> Human: My daughter was born in September of 2016, so this is the first year tax season with a dependent. However, her dad and I are not married. Were boyfriend and girlfriend. We live together. I have a VERY vague understanding of taxes, Ive only filed once before.From what I understand, we cannot both claim her. We also cannot file jointly because we are not married. So... does it matter who claims her? Will one of us get a larger return? I worked 7.5 months out of 2016. He worked all of 2016, mostly with one job, a couple months with two. Correct me on anything, if I have a misconception. I would just like a better understanding on the whole thing. Explain Like Im 5, mixed with Personal Finance.  <response>: Only one of you can claim her, and it would be advantageous for the person with the highest income to claim her.One of you can also claim head of household status to further reduce tax liability, which will be the same person that claims her exemption and child tax credit. 