<p>Hey guys, I had a quick question, my mom makes about 22000 a year which is not a lot so i get loans and grants from financial aid. But my question is will she not get money back for me from taxes because I got these grants and loans?</p>
<p>No, but what she gets back in taxes could affect your loans and grants (but I doubt it since the income is so low)</p>
<p>That’s a very broad question. Qualified education expenses paid with loans are eligible for the American Opportunity Credit, loans aren’t free money. But the whole tax situation depends on the amount of the grants and the amount and type of education expenses paid.</p>
<p>If you are questioning whether she will get her usual federal taxes refund check, heed this: Getting a refund every year means your paychecks all year are smaller than they could be. Fill out a W-4 form to make your paychecks bigger. Then, you won’t have to wait a year for a refund check. Instead, you should owe about $0 in taxes.</p>
<p>Are you still a dependent on your mother’s tax return? Loans are not income so they won’t be of interest. But grants…that’s a whole other story. But if your tuition and educational supplies equal or exceed your grants you don’t have to pay taxes on them. But if you got $50K in grants and your tuition was $35K and your books and supplies were $2K in a calender year, you have $13K, which puts you in a category where YOU have to file a return and you do owe taxes on that amount. But if you got $35K in grants and the rest in loans and work study, you don’t have to do a thing since the grant is eaten up by the tuition and supplies. </p>
<p>But all of this can get complex. If in doubt you need to visit an IRS office with you mom and get some help on both of your taxes From what you have written, it doesn’t seem likely that you will owe anything in taxes, but that is not something any internet board or anyone who does not look at all of the info can tell you for sure.</p>
<p>beolein, if Mom’s income is that low, the refund may be from refundable credits (additional child tax credit and earned income credit). You can’t get those as part of your paycheck.</p>
<p>OP - your grants don’t count when considering support, but the loans in your name are considered support you are providing for yourself. That could factor into whether you are providing 50% or more of your own support. If you are not, then you mother should still be able to claim you on her tax return (which is the case for most undergraduates).</p>
<p>As cptofthehouse has suggested, you could end up owing taxes if your grants cover more than tuition, fees, and books. Because you have loans, that may be less likely (as he suggests, you need to talk to someone familiar with taxes and educational benefits). If you speak to someone at the IRS, document your discussion, in case any issues arise in the future (most of their agents are pretty good, but some are not).</p>
<p>If you mother claims you as a dependent, she will be entitled to your exemption, and might have earned income credit based on you as a dependent. She might also be able to claim the American Opportunity Credit, but only if the loans were used to pay the qualifying expenses (tuition, fees, books). If those were covered by scholarships, she won’t get the credit. It may be possible to shift the scholarships to room & board, making them taxable (to you), but at your mother’s income level, it probably wouldn’t be of benefit.</p>