<p>friedpasta, I don’t think most people would report a graduation gift of a modest amount of money. You are right, though, that there is no instruction specifically about that. It’s easy if you’re thinking “do I report a $10 bill in a birthday card as untaxed income?” – virtually no one would do that. But there is not a table or chart available to tell you when the amount crosses over into something that must be reported either. $5000 does seem like a lot though…</p>
<p>I think you’ll just have to make your own call on this. Do you think what you put will be a determining factor in your son getting a certain kind or certain amount of financial aid? If your income and assets put you out of range anyway, then it won’t hurt anything to report it.</p>