- To be eligible to claim a tax deduction for your child's college tuition, you must be able to claim the child as a dependent. The child must be your biological, step- or foster child, your sibling, stepbrother or sister, half brother or sister, or a descendent of any of these. You must also provide financial support for the child, he must reside with you for 6 months of the year or more and cannot be greater than 24 years of age. If the child is between the ages of 19 and 24, he must be a full-time college student. Other eligibility requirements include the fact that you must pay the college tuition for the student and your filing status cannot be married filing separately.
- You can claim the tax deduction for tuition, but you may also include other expenses that you pay for during the tax year. The costs for required textbooks, supplies and equipment for the child's courses may also be included in the total amount of the deduction you can claim. However, the IRS does not permit you to included expenses for room and board, medical expenses, transportation or meals. While you may claim the tax deduction when you use a loan to pay for the child's tuition, you may not do so if you use funds from a Coverdell education savings account or qualified tuition plan because you already receive a tax benefit for these provisions. You also cannot claim a tax deduction for any portion of the tuition that is paid using a scholarship, grant or employer assistance.
- Congress and the IRS periodicially increase the limits of the applicable tax deduction for education expenses, including tuition. In 2010, the maximum amount for this deduction was $4,000. Your modified adjusted gross income determines how much you are eligible to claim as a deduction. If your filing status is single, head of household or qualifying widower, then you can claim up to: $4,000 if your MAGI is less than $65,000; $2,000 if your MAGI is between $65,000 and $80,000; $0 if your MAGI exceeds $80,000. If your filing status is married filing jointly, you can claim up to: $4,000 if your MAGI is less than $130,000; $2,000 if your MAGI is between $130,000 and $160,000; or $0 if your MAGI is greater than $160,000.
- You must file Form 8917 with your income tax return in order to claim the tuition and fees deduction. You can only claim the amount that you paid for. Therefore, if you pay $3,000 in tuition for your child and he pays the remainder of his tuition, then you can only claim up to $3,000. However, if you are married filing jointly and your MAGI $140,000, then you may only claim a tax deduction of $2,000.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -