Completion of postsecondary college

[krebadulla]

Does "completed" mean receiving a bachelors degree? Or having completed exactly 4 years of college even without a bachelors degree? I would assume to answer "yes" because I have completed 4 years of college but have not received my bachelors yet... If this is incorrect, how would I amend my tax return to fix this and will I be penalized for having to do so?

[AnnetteB · Accepted solution]

The question about whether you have completed four years of college refers to completing four years of post-secondary education without regard to having attained a bachelor’s degree. 

The question does refer to whether you have completed four years of college as of the beginning of the tax year.  So, if you completed your fourth year during 2015 but had not done so as of 1/1/2015, then you would answer No.

Take a look at the information below for more details about the American Opportunity Tax Credit – which is the reason for asking the question.

Also, if you discover that you answered the question incorrectly and you already filed your return, you can amend your return to make the correction.  You would not be penalized for filing a corrected return.  More details about how file an amended return are also included below.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/3301953

https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/4904787

[krebadulla]

Thank you that was very helpful. Also, will I be able to correct this portion of the tax return when I amend?

[AnnetteB]

Yes, you can revisit any part of the return during the amend process.