Tuition and Fees Deduction

1. In order to take a deduction for Tuition and Fees, you do not have to itemize. This deduction is not taken on a Schedule A, but rather on the Form 8917, which you will file with your Form 1040.
2. If you are a business owner or self-employed you may be able to claim the Hope or Lifetime Learning credit as a business expense.
   
3. If you are filing your return as Married Filing Separately, you will not be able to take a deduction for Tuition and Fees.
   
4. If someone else has claimed you on their return or is planning to, you will not be able to take the deduction on your own return.
   
5. Depending on your filing status, if you earn a large sum of money, you may not be able to take the deduction.
   
6. If another taxpayer has already claimed the Hope or Lifetime Learning credit on a student, no one else will be able to take the deduction. As the saying goes, "There is no double-dipping allowed."
   
7. If you take the deduction as a business expense, you cannot take the deduction as a non-business expense.
   
8. If you or your child is a recipient of a tax-free scholarship, fellowship, grant or education savings account like a Coverdell education savings account, tax-free savings bond or employer-provided education assistance, you cannot take a deduction.
   
9. When you pay with a tax-exempt distribution from a qualified tuition plan, you can deduct qualified expenses you pay with the part of the distribution that is a return on your contribution to the plan. However, you cannot take a deduction with tax-free savings bond or employer-provided education assistance.

See Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education for more details about special rules and further instructions about how best to take advantage of these great tax breaks.

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