EIC for Married Daughter - Rejected Return

[gfizer]

Taxpayers have a daughter who was 23 and a full-time student who resided with the taxpayers in 2012. Daughter married in June of 2012 but she and her husband lived (and continue to live) with the taxpayers for the remainder of the year. Daughter and her husband had very little income and filed a joint return for the sole purpose of receiving a refund of income tax withholding. Daughter did not claim her own exemption on her jointly filed return. I read through the EIC instructions and it appears to me that the taxpayers should be able to claim the EIC for 2012 but when I filed the return it was rejected and the reject explanation said that the child's SSN on Schedule EIC could not be that of a spouse on another accepted return for the same period. I went through the questions on the EITC Assistant on the IRS website and it said that they should be eligible as well. Am I missing something? Should I just paper file the return?

[Terry D EA]

<<<<<<child's SSN on Schedule EIC could not be that of a spouse on another accepted return for the same period.>>>>>>

I could be wrong but it sounds like the SS number has already been used on another return that has been accepted for this year. If this is true, then your only alternative is to paper file.

[HaroldinGeorgia]

Pub 17, page 235: "Exception:An exception to the joint return test applies if your

child and his or her spouse file a joint return only to claim a refund of income

tax withheld or estimated tax paid".

Looks like you will have to paper file, and maybe quote their Pub.

[Pacun]

I always file the parents first so the rejected one is child's which is the easy return to be mailed.