Q. When you say "We assign $4000 of expenses to the AOTC, allowing you to claim that.", how is this done in TT and on which return?
A. Good question. I left out that important detail (I was concentrating on your daughter's return). On your return, you enter your daughter's 1098-T, but you modify what you enter. You enter $4000 in box 1 and leave box 5 blank. Enter no other numbers. That's the short cut. Again, lying to TT is not lying to the IRS.
Q. When you say "enter a 1098-T with box 1 blank and $5117 in box 5", is that on the parent return or the student return?
A. On the student's return. And, yes, it is OK to use the 1098-T on both returns.
Q. Is the student return to reflect someone can and will claim them as a dependent in this scenario?
A. Yes.
