Do I need to report the student loans I received in 2016 if I paid no interest on them? What if I got an assistantship that paid my full tuition?

[rachelkramer13]

If I need to report this information, how do I do that? The tuition remission is not on my 1098-T and my student loan provider has no tax documents for me, even though I accrued interest in 2016. Thanks!

[KrisD · Accepted solution]

No, student loans are not reported until you start to pay the interest on them.

When you do, you may get a 1099-E and you can report that. It could result in an adjustment to your Adjusted Gross Income and lower your tax liability.

If you pay less than $600 in a year, you may not get a 1099-E, but you can still deduct the interest as long as you can show proof.

If the assistantship covered your tuition, you would have no education expenses to apply to an education credit.

If the "assistantship" was considered income, you should have gotten a W2 or 1099-MISC from the school.

If you are unsure, contact the school or use the IRS interactive interview by clicking the link below:

Click here for an IRS Interview to determine if your Scholarship, Fellowship, Grant, or Tuition Redu...