I paid tuition for my 3 kids in a private school, 7, 5 and 3 year old. I pay for each child $200 per month, total for year was $6960.00 , how to I file this?

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
January 24, 2025
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Hi, My 3 little kids attend at a local private school, I paid for them tuition in total for the year of 2024 $6,960.00, I got from them a letter proving it, can this added to tax deductions?

Best answer by xmasbaby0

Thank you! I did a quick Google search for a 529 plan, and you're right.

However, my kids attended school during the summer for summer programs. Could the costs for those months count?

And yes, we both work, but our 3-5 y/o kids attend at a regular school, not child care.

If the children were there so that you could work, and you can enter income from both spouses, you can use a summer program for the childcare credit.

xmasbaby0

Employee

Did you pay for the private school from a 529 Plan? If not, there is nothing to enter on a federal tax return about the private schools.

EDUCATION EXPENSES

Education expenses for grades K-12 are not deductible on your Federal return, whether for private, public, or home schooling, nor are the expenses for tutoring, after school lessons or after school activities, such as dance lessons, sports, etc. Some states allow deductions/credits for K-12 education and/or home schooling expenses; if your state has these deductions available, you will be prompted to enter them when you prepare your state return. (As far as I know, the states that offer any sort of K-12 deductions/credits are Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,Louisiana, Minnesota, and Wisconsin)

**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.**

felberbaumleibAuthor

Wow! thanks for your quick response.

Not sure what a 529 Plan is, I just got a simple letter from them:

"This is to advise that the child/ren of Lxxx & Rxxx Fxxxxxx, residing at 2 xxxxxx Way 102 xxxxxx , NY, have been enrolled in our School during 2024.

Name/s and DOB of the Child/ren enrolled are as follows: Sxxxxxx x/xx/2017, Sxxxx x/xx/2019, Yxxxxx x/x/2021.
Tuition/Day Care was charged in the sum of $580 monthly.
Any courtesy extended towards them will be greatly appreciated."

xmasbaby0

Employee

If you do not even know about 529 plans, it is a safe bet that you did not use one to pay for the tuition. So, sorry, the tuition is not deductible on your tax return as an education expense.

BUT....wait.....the 7 year old is school age. Were the little ones -- 3 and 5 year old ones-- attending so that you and a spouse could work? If so, you can enter the cost as a daycare expense for the childcare credit.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/taxation/child-dependent-care-credit/L8h8A5Klg_US_en_US?uid=m5yifys1

Federal>Deductions and Credits>You and Your Family>Child and Dependent Care Credit

https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/am-i-eligible-to-claim-the-child-and-dependent-care-credit