We have college kid. She has an out of pocket portion on tuition. We give her cash to pay with her check and we pay 4 books. can we deduct even though we gave her cash?

[ourfamily123]

We have college kid. She has an out of pocket portion on tuition and the rest is paid by her student loans we are not on. We give her cash to pay with her check and we pay for the college books as well. Since we Pay part of the tuition can we deduct even though we gave her cash and used her check to pay tuition?

[Hal_Al · Accepted solution]

Yes, but only if she is your dependent. The education credit or deduction goes to the person who claims the student's exemption, regardless of which one of you paid.

There is an exception, for education, to the general tax rule that you must pay it to deduct it.

[ourfamily123]

Thk you. She started paying down loan and received interest to claim on her taxes. Can we claim that as well as long as she doesnt? She is our dependent

[Hal_Al]

No. Student loan interest is not treated the same as tuition and books. For you to be able to deduct it, you must actually pay it and be legally obligated to pay it. That is, you must have been a co-signer of the loan or the loan is in your name.

Furthermore,  since she is somebody's dependent, she is not allowed to deduct student loan interest on her return.

[ourfamily123]

Got it. Thank you