@confusedrf - what TT states is that the loan PROCEEDS can be used to pay for the qualified expenses.
it never says making the payments themselves is a qualified expense.
this is also on page 13 and is consistent with what TT is saying:
Paid with borrowed funds. You can claim an American opportunity credit for qualified education expenses paid with the proceeds of a loan. Use the expenses to figure the American opportunity credit for the year in which the expenses are paid, not the year in which the loan is re-paid. Treat loan payments sent directly to the educational institution as paid on the date the institution credits the student's account.
