International student, why do i owe $500? earned slightly less than 20k, paid over 30k in tuition this year. (have close to 100k unused tuition credits)

[M15]

I did a Co-Op year where I earned 38k for a tax year, and my amount owed was significantly less than this...

Why cant i use tuition credits to lower my return to 0?

Thanks in advance for your comments! I'm still figuring "taxes" out. Just wondering if its worth it to go to a tax person in real life... because I find it very unlikely that I owe such a substantial amount when I earned half of what i did for my previous tax year.

[AmandaR1 · Accepted solution]

Whether you have a refund or an amount due, is often misunderstood. I can't see your return, but I can help you understand it. 

When you work, amounts are withheld from your paychecks as estimates for your income taxes, which are calculated now when you do your taxes. The amounts withheld are just an estimate based on the number of exemptions you select on your W-4, when you started your job (you can change these with your employer, "0" withholds the most). 

Many things can cause estimates to not be exactly correct. So, whether you have a refund or an amount due, has nothing to do with how much money you earn. Comparing last year's return, to this years return, and going line-by-line through the first 2 pages of form 1040, will help you understand why this year's is different and make sure it is correct. I'll include instructions below, to preview this year's form in TurboTax.

The education credits are not based on the amount you paid. These are limited to $2,000 and $2,500 each year, depending on the credit. Learn more about these credits at the FAQ below: https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/3301953

Preview your 1040 by following the instructions below: https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/3302322