early 401k withdrawal for school project

edsmith232 · ‎February 14, 2020

My son attended an early college STEM high school. For his senior project (for a grade) we took money out of my 401k. The class was not a dual credit class, but was required to graduate. Can I claim the withdrawal as being for higher education?

macuser_22 · ‎February 14, 2020

No. Only IRA's allow an exemption from the early distribution *penalty*, not the tax, for education. 401(k) distributions do not have an educational exemption.

**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**

edsmith232 · ‎February 15, 2020

Thanks. I went back to my papers, and i have a simple IRA, not a 401k.

macuser_22 · ‎February 15, 2020

@edsmith232 wrote:

Thanks. I went back to my papers, and i have a simple IRA, not a 401k.

It would not qualify;

Per the IRS in Pub 590B

Eligible educational institution.

This is any college, university, vocational school, or other postsecondary educational institution eligible to participate in the student aid programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education. It includes virtually all accredited, public, nonprofit, and proprietary (privately owned profit-making) postsecondary institutions. The educational institution should be able to tell you if it is an eligible educational institution.

**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**