Why do I have to pay now that I have put in tuition and Loan interest information?

[HannahEsmith97]

I only make a little over $17,000 a year and I was a full-time student last year.  When I put in my student loan information and my tuition expenses, I am no longer getting a small refund, now I owe over $500... why? 

[MayaD]

Does your 1098-T form has an amount in box 5 for scholarships/grants?

The amount in box 5 that exceeds the amount of qualifying educational expenses becomes taxable income.

[hbl3973]

HannahEsmith97,

You've got a puzzler there but there are some possibilities:

• A mis-entry of your educational financial information
• Scholarship income exceeding tuition-related expenses
• A dependent status issue

In order to further assist, I would need some details as we volunteers in this forum cannot and should never see your personal tax return.  These details include:

• Age as of 1/1/2020
• Are you being claimed as a dependent by parent(s)
• Did you receive financial aid other than loans, if so, how much?
• Did you also pay for books and other course materials with your own or borrowed funds?

Hopefully, this will be enough to figure things out for you.