using turbotax online, where do i enter room & board expenses to account for some of the funding withdrawn and shown on my son's 1099Q form?

[PhxSand]

the only college expense i was able to add was for books. there is no area to add room & board expenses and these amounted to 75% of the difference between the 1098T 1. Payments for Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses and 5. Scholarship or Grants. So right now I am paying taxes on $16k of 529 distributions which should be offset by Room & Board expenses.

[Bsch4477]

If all of your withdrawal on your 1099-Q was used for qualified expenses you don’t have to report that form. 

[PhxSand]

thanks for the quick response, but that can't be the case as my taxes went up by the marginal rate on $10k in 529 funds used for Room & Board that aren't accounted for anywhere in TT. if i remove both the 1099Q and 1098-T forms, my tax goes back to the original amount.

[Hal_Al]

You can't enter those room & board expenses yet. This is a known glitch in TurboTax (TT). They are working on it (no announced fix date).   The 2025 education and 529 sections appear totally redesigned, from last year. 

The 1099-Q is  only an informational document. The numbers on it are not required to be entered onto your (or your student's) tax return. The interview is complicated and it's easy to make mistakes. Avoid it if you can and you probably can. 

You can just not report the 1099-Q, at all, if your student-beneficiary has sufficient educational expenses, including room & board (even if he lives at home) to cover the distribution. When the box 1 amount on form 1099-Q is fully covered by expenses, TurboTax will enter nothing about the 1099-Q on the actual tax forms. But, it will prepare a 1099-Q worksheet for your records (you don’t need it). You would still have to do the math to see if there were enough expenses left over for you to claim the tuition credit. You also cannot count expenses that were paid by tax free scholarships.

References:

1. On form 1099-Q, instructions to the recipient reads: "Nontaxable distributions from CESAs and QTPs are not required to be reported on your income tax return. You must determine the taxability of any distribution." 
2. IRS Pub 970 states: “Generally, distributions are tax free if they aren't more than the beneficiary's AQEE for the year. Don't report tax-free distributions (including qualifying rollovers) on your tax return”.
3. "IRS Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education states: If the entire 1099-Q went to qualified expenses, room and board, tuition, etc; then, you do not need to enter the form."