Azad
New Member

Employer-provided assistance - Did you receive a scholarship or grant in 2019?

TurboTax ask me this question:
Did you receive a scholarship or grant in 2019? note: enter the amount you received. DON'T INCLUDE AMOUNTS ALREADY LISTED ON A w-2 or OTHER TAX FORMS.

I did receive $5250.00 in 2019. However the amount is not listed in a specific box in my W-2. 
extra information: MY 1098-T box 1 shows $5004.   Also, I spent $633 on supply & books.

Do I need to report the $5250 where I have been asked this question?
I have read so many articles that explains it differently.  

KathrynG3
Expert Alumni

Education

It depends. The ultimate resource would be directly from the IRS itself.

 

Please see IRS Publication 970 Tax Benefits for Education starting on page 65 for Employer-Provided Education Assistance. It would appear that the only amount eligible for you to claim for an education credit, presuming the books were required and presuming you have already completed the first four years of post-secondary education, would be 20% of eligible costs: (($5,001+633)-($5,250))*20% for the Lifetime Learning Credit (see page 22 of the link above)

Lifetime Learning Credit, page 25, states Related expenses. Student activity fees and expenses
for course-related books, supplies, and equipment are included in qualified education expenses only if the fees
and expenses must be paid to the institution for enrollment or attendance.

[Edited 4/14/2020 | 9:15 AM PST]

@Azad 

Azad
New Member

Education

@KathrynG3 
So is it right to make the following statement?:
I cannot claim Lifetime Learning Credit, If I received tuition reimbursement (not more than $5250) which covered my entire tuition.

 

DMarkM1
Employee Tax Expert

Education

You are correct.  Any amounts of employer reimbursements up to 5250 that you exclude from income to cover any qualified education expenses cannot be used as a basis for other credits such as the Lifetime Learning Credit.  

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