What is "tax free employer tuition assistance" and what qualifies for it?

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
June 6, 2019
3 replies
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I don't understand "tax free employer provided assistance" question as I'm completing the information for my 1098t.

What is tax free employer provided assistance?

I received a Pell Grant, Tuition Aid Grant, Federal Loans (direct, unsub, and parent), and New Presidential Scholar. With this I still had to pay some money to go to school.

The question asks what portion was tax free employer provided assistance for Box B of my 1098t and I don't know what is the correct answer.

TurboTax Basic Windows

CarolC

Employee

Tax-free employer assistance is money your employer gave you to pay for your higher education expenses. If your employer provided this benefit, and you didn't pay tax on these funds, then select Yes to this question. If not, answer No.

See this TurboTax article Deduction for Higher Education for additional information.

TyMurr

What if my parent’s employer provided dependent free employer tuition. So not my employer, my parent’s employer?

JulieS

Yes, it is still employer assistance even if it is not your employer.

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aprom3

Good afternoon! I have a question related to this matter. I am doing a graduate fellowship with a company, which means I am working for them part time to fulfill some of the credits of my master's degree. As part of this fellowship, the company is paying for my tuition. The amount they paid is included in box 12 on my 1098-T. They paid the money directly to the school. It was never actually given to me. Does that mean it is considered "tax free employer tuition assistance"? Thanks!

AmyC

Employee

This may help, Solved: How to tell if Employer Provided Tuition Assistance is ...

@aprom3 If the link does not answer your question, could you clarify since box 12 does not exist on a 1098T. It would not go on box 12 of your W2. How much is showing where?

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