Form 1040 College Expenses Question

Paying for College
1

<p>[I'm reposting this here on the suggestion of a regular CC contributor:]</p>

<p>I know I can't take both Hope Credit and Tuition Expense deduction for the SAME college student. But can I take the $4,000 Tuition Expense deduction for D#1 who's a Junior and also take the $1,650 Hope Credit for D#2 who's a Freshman?</p>

2

<p>I believe you can. </p>

<p>The publication is IRS970 and explains it (lengthily and somewhat confusingly being a tax publication :rolleyes: )</p>

<p><a href="http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>tuition and fees deduction rules are pages 32to37</p>

<p>Hope credits rules are on pages 8-15</p>

<p>From page 8</p>

<p>
[quote]
If you pay qualified education expenses for more than one student in the same year, you can choose to take credits on a per-student, per-year basis. This means that,
for example, you can claim the Hope credit for one student
and the lifetime learning credit for another student in the
same year.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Might the lifetime learning credits be a better credit to take for your older daughter? The tuition and fees deduction reduces the taxable income by a max of $4000 - the lifetime learning credit reduces the tax liability by up to $2000 - run both scenarios and see which saves you more.</p>

3

<p>hope and lifetime credit forms <a href="http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8863.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8863.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>tuition and fees forms <a href="http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8917.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8917.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

4

<p>swimcatsmom - Thank you. I'll dig through that Pub970. </p>

<p>Regards your question, I'll have to run the numbers. In past years the Tuition Assistance deduction has worked out better. But this year the Income Phase-out is a little higher and our income is a little lower. So yes, the Lifetime Learning credit may be better this time through!</p>

5

<p>Wait, what if you're a dual-enrolled student? (A high school senior?)</p>

6

<p>Don't think so. I think you have to be a degree candidate and at least half time and, a high school student, I don't think would qualify. (double check with a tax expert which I am not).</p>

<p>For hope tax credit one of the eligibility questions is:

[quote]
Was the student enrolled at least half-time in a
program leading to a degree, certificate, or other
recognized educational credential for at least one
academic period beginning during the tax year?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>For the tuition credit:

[quote]
Who Is an Eligible Student
For purposes of the tuition and fees deduction, an eligible student
is a student who was enrolled in one or more courses at an
eligible educational institution (as defined under Qualified
education expenses, earlier on this page). The student must have
either a high school diploma or a General Educational
Development (GED) credential

[/quote]
</p>