Check Date or Deposit Date - tuition payment

[thalaivar]

I sent money from a 529 account to my daughter's college (she is the beneficiary) for Spring semester 2022 on Dec 14, 2021. But because of holidays and other issues, the college only deposited (cashed) the check yesterday (1/4/2022). Should this be considered as money I paid towards tuition in 2021 or should it be for 2022? Although the tuition is for the Spring 2022 semester since the check date is Dec 14, 2021, should this be considered when I fill out the 2021 taxes?

[ThomasM125]

You can treat the payment as belonging to 2021, since that is when you made it. It doesn't matter that the college processed it in the next year. Furthermore, you can treat tuition paid in the current year as belonging to that year, even if it is for education expenses for up to the first three months of the following year.

[Hal_Al]

I agree with ThomasM125, you can treat the tuition paid with the 529 distribution as paid in 2021.

If the 1098-T, issued by the school, does not match that, you can make an adjustment in TurboTax.

The 1098-T is only an informational document.  You claim the tuition credit, or report scholarship income, based on your own financial records, not the 1098-T. In the 1098-T screen, click on the link "What if this is not what I paid the school" underneath box 1. You will then be able to enter the actual amounts paid. 

[Carl]

Colleges work in academic years, the IRS works in calendar years. So the reality is, it takes you five calendar years to get that four year degree. With that said:

Qualified education expenses are claimed/deducted in the tax year they are paid. It does not matter what year is paid "for".

When you dropped the check in the mail or handed it over to the payee, on that date you lost control of that money. I call that "constructive receipt" of payment by the recipient. That date is the date you paid it. Doesn't matter when they cashed the check.

I would expect you to have a receipt of some sort to prove they received/accepted the payment in 2021. That's all you would need if you were ever audited on it.

[thalaivar]

I had the 529 plan administrator send the check directly to the school in the second week of December 2021. I only have proof that it was mailed on Dec 14 2021 and the check number and the address to which it was mailed. I do not know when it was received by the university/college. The Financial services department at the college was closed between Dec 20 2021 to Jan 3 2022 and reopened only on the 4th on which day they deposited the check and credited my daughter's account.

[Carl]

I only have proof that it was mailed on Dec 14 2021

Then that's when you lost/relinquished control of the money - and you can prove it.