@NCperson
$20,000 is a rough calculation for purposes of illustration. If the student has $20,000 of income, they would owe about $700 of income tax (10% bracket after standard deduction) and could qualify for a $700 AOTC in their own name. To benefit from the full $2500 AOTC, a single student would need about $33,000 of income earned from working.
The conditions to receive the refundable AOTC without earned income are quite restrictive as you point out.
Which is why it is almost always more beneficial for the parent to claim the child as a dependent and claim the AOTC on the parents return.
