First year not a dependent although I paid college expenses

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
April 3, 2021
2 replies
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Hello

My son graduated college in 2020 and promptly moved out on his own and is now supporting himself as of July of 2020. I thought he should no longer be my dependent as he is supporting himself. He did however receive a 1098-T that references college expenses that I paid for. Is there some way I can claim that 1098-T even though he has already filed his taxes without claiming 1098-T?

xmasbaby0

Employee

No, unless he is claimed as a dependent on your tax return you cannot get the education credit. Sorry. If he was able to file his own tax return and say he could not be claimed as someone else's dependent, he could have claimed the credit on his own return, and could still amend to do so.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

Hal_Al

Employee

The tuition credit goes with the student's exemption (dependency) regardless of who paid it. So, you cannot claim it.

He can. If he didn't, he can file an amended return to do so.

There is a four time limit to claiming the most generous tuition credit, the American Opportunity Credit (AOTC). Graduating in May 2020 usually means 2020 was his 5th calendar year in school and the parents already claimed the AOTC the maximum 4 times. If so, he can claim the less generous Lifetime Learning credit (LLC) or the Tuition and Fees Deduction (TFD)