Education expenses entered - not showing up in deductions & credits

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
April 19, 2021
1 reply
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Hi - I'm using TurboTax Deluxe that I downloaded to my Mac.

I entered my daughter's education expenses (undergrad) & my wife's education expenses (grad school).

I verified they are there by repeating the entries in the step-by-step process & by reviewing the forms.

However, in the deductions & credits overview screen, only my daughter's education expenses are showing up.

Shouldn't my wife's education expenses be visible there too?

Note that my daughter qualified us for the AOTC credit but my wife got no credit / deduction.

Perhaps that's why my wife's education expenses aren't showing up.

Hal_Al

Employee

Grad students are not eligible for the AOTC. But are eligible for the non-refundable Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC) or the Tuition and Fees Deduction (TFD).

If you are eligible, you have answered something wrong, in the interview. But, some people are just not eligible. There is a lower income threshold for the LLC and TFD. So even though your income was low enough to get the AOTC for your daughter's ed, it may be too high for your spouse's ed. See

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/llc

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8917.pdf

paulmlacAuthor

OP Here -

Sorry, I wasn't clear...

I know that my wife won't get the AOTC as a grad student. And she's not getting the LLC or TFD either.

But I'm trying to understand if there's an error in the system. I entered all of her education expenses. On the Federal Taxes tab, Deductions & Credits tab, I thought her education expenses would show up. They don't. Are they ONLY visible if she's getting a deduction / credit?

Hal_Al

Employee

Q. Are they ONLY visible if she's getting a deduction / credit?

A. Yes.

The expenses will show on the student info worksheet, but not on any forms or on the deductions/credits summary screen.

If you are claiming a 529 plan distribution, the expenses will only show on the student info worksheet and the 1099-Q work sheet; not on any actual tax forms or the deductions/credits summary screen.