What if we, as Grandparents, contributed to a Grandchild's Catholic high school tuition? Is there a deduction for this

[craigmd]

?

[MindyB]

No. Directly paying a grandchild's high school tuition is not tax-deductible on your federal income tax return, as the IRS does not view it as a charitable donation. 

However, it is an excellent estate planning move because any tuition paid directly to the school does not count toward your annual gift tax limit, allowing you to move large amounts of money out of your estate tax-free. 

To get an actual tax break in the future, you could contribute to a 529 plan for your grandchild,  while there is still no federal deduction, many states allow you to deduct those contributions on your state return, and currently, the 2026 rules now allow you to withdraw up to $20,000 per year tax-free for K-12 private school tuition (this was $10,000 for the return you are filing now, 2025).

[xmasbaby0]

You gave your grandchild a gift, which is not deductible.

Gifts given to family members, friends or other individuals are not deductible.   Gifts received are not taxable to the person who received the gift, and are not entered on a tax return.

If your gift exceeds the yearly limit ($19,000 per individual)  imposed by the gift tax rules, then you will need to complete a Form 709 gift tax form and send it to the IRS, although it is very unlikely that you will owe any tax.

TurboTax does not support Form 709.  It is not an income tax form and would not be included as part of an income tax return.

Here is a link to the form:

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f709.pdf

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/estates/the-gift-tax-made-simple/L5tGWVC8N

Here's a link for Form 709 preparation software:

 https://www.puritas-springs.com/product-category/federal

Here are some useful videos on the Form:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5wJow5h-No

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z_28sVOrTY

[NCperson]

@xmasbaby0 @craigmd the $19,000 gift limit does not apply to tuition paid directly to the high school.

So, for example,  you could give $30,000 in tuition payments directly to the school and then $19,000 to the grandchild and not be required to report any of the gifts.  

There is no deduction for these gifts.