Why am i not getting my education credit when I already submitted my 1098-t

[SharonD007]

To qualify for education credits, you must meet all three of the basic requirements to claim an education credit (American Opportunity Tax Credit and Lifetime Learning Credit) in addition to other rules for each credit.

You must meet all three of the basic requirements to claim an education credit (American Opportunity Tax Credit and Lifetime Learning Credit):

1. You, your dependent or a third party pays qualified education expenses for higher education.
2. An eligible student must be enrolled at an eligible educational institution.
3. The eligible student is yourself, your spouse or a dependent you list on your tax return.

You may not be receiving the credit for one of these common reasons:

• You are using the Married Filing Separately filing status
• Your adjusted gross income (AGI) is too high
  • The American Opportunity Tax Credit AGI limit is $90,000 ($180,000 for joint returns)
  • The Lifetime Learning Credit AGI limit is $90,000 ($180,000 for joint returns)
• Your educational expenses were paid with tax-free scholarships, fellowships, grants, education savings account funds, tax-free savings bond interest, or employer-provided education assistance.

For additional information, please review the IRS article Education Credits.  TurboTax also has an article explaining who can claim the credit. Please see Take Advantage of Two Education Tax Credits.

[Hal_Al]

There's a new urban myth among college students that says they can get a $1000 from the government just for filing a tax form. For most of them, they simply aren't eligible. A full time unmarried student, under age 24, even if you don't qualify as a dependent, is only eligible for the refundable portion of the American Opportunity Credit if he supports himself by working. You cannot be supporting yourself on parental support, 529 plans or student loans & grants. You usually must have actually paid tuition, not had it paid by scholarships & grants.  It is usually best if the parent claims that credit. 

You cannot claim a credit if you are, or can be, claimed as a dependent by someone else.

Reference: Line 7 instructions for form 8863. https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i8863