RayW7
Expert Alumni

Deductions & credits

If your Distribution did not exceed your Qualified Education Expenses then you don't have to enter the information from 1099-Q at all.

If the Distribution doesn’t exceed the amount of the student's qualifying expenses, then the distribution is not Taxable and you don't have to report any of the distribution on your tax return. I understand that this sounds strange, especially regarding taxes, but the IRS does not request any additional information to substantiate whether or not your Distribution exceeded your actual qualified expenses. Nevertheless it would be wise to keep a good record of these expenses just in case your return gets picked up for examination.

To correct this issue simply remove the information from the 1099-Q, or if you like, TurboTax allows you to substantiate this information by countering the amount from the Distribution by entering Education expenses. You can find the Education Expenses Section under Deductions and Credits.