I have paid off my student loan with the US Department of Education but I haven't received any paperwork that reflects that. What do I do to get credit?

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
July 15, 2020
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GiseleD

Reach out to the entity managing your loan to see if they have included a 1098-E in your account. You may have to download it from your online loan account.

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xmasbaby0

Employee

And...paying off your student loan is not what you enter on a tax return. Only the interest you paid for the loan can be deducted. You get no deduction for paying the principal.

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Hal_Al

Employee

What do I do to get credit?

There is no education credit or deduction for paying off your loan. You claim the education credit or deduction at the time the loan money was used to pay tuition and other qualified expenses.

You are allowed to deduct the interest you pay, each year (up to $2500). The deduction is technically an adjustment to income, meaning you get the deduction even if you don't itemized deductions. That is, the student loan interest deduction is in addition to the standard deduction.

The loan company is required to issue a form 1099-E, showing the interest you paid for 2019. But, you can use your own records if you don't have one. There's a possibility that you didn't pay any interest, if DOE accepted a settlement that was less that what was owed.