<p>I am the only child of in my family, and will be attending UNC Chapel Hill in the fall to begin my freshman year. My family has to pay about 16k to 18k per year for my education (instate). My question is this: if only my Dad works, and he makes about 90k a year, will the fact that I am going to college and paying tuition result in a tax deduction for him?</p>
<p>You don’t get a college tax “deduction” but there is a tuition tax credit your parents will get if they are paying your college bills.</p>
<p>It may. There are various education tax benefits available including Tax credits (as mentioned by Thumper) and tuition/fees tax deductions etc. They are somewhat limited in amount and in what expenses are eligible. There are also income limits. Mostly only tuition/fees costs are considered qualified expenses though for some benefits books may count and for the 529 account room and board counts. </p>
<p>The tax publication with the relevant information is IRS 970.
<a href=“http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf[/url]”>http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf</a>
The one currently available is for the 2008 tax year and there are some major changes. The major change for 2009 is to the Hope credit ( now the American Opportunity Tax Credit I think?) which is amended as follows for 2009 and 2010</p>
<p>-Amount increased to 100% of the first $2,000 in expenses
-Amount increased to 25% of next $2,000 in expenses
-Annual limit increased to $2,500
-Timeframe increased to first FOUR years of postsecondary education
-”Qualified tuition and related expenses” amended to include “required course materials” (i.e., books, etc)
-AGI limits increased to $80,000 ($160,000)
-Up to 40% of the qualified credit is refundable (meaning even with no tax liability you can get up to a $1000 credit)</p>
<p>You can’t double dip (ie - use the same expense for more than one tax benefit) so it is important to figure out which benefit is most beneficial.</p>
<p>The thing that’s a surprise to some people is that one can’t simply deduct the college expenses - i.e. if it costs $18K/yr for college they can’t deduct that 18K from their income. The only options are those like the ones mentioned by the previous posters but even those aren’t available if the income level is too high. Since the rules and thresholds seem to change frequently, don’t count on anything and realize any deductions could get better or go away entirely.</p>
<p>There are some very handy little charts here which summarize the differences in the various tax deduction/credits nicely:</p>
<p>[FinAid</a> | Saving for College | Education Tax Benefit Coordination](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid)</p>