Hi Susan, thanks for your messages earlier in the thread. It has helped clarify some of my confusion. I've waited for calls from a TT specialist for over 3 hours total - each time I encountered an issue with the call.
If you could possibly help with my situation, that'd be greatly appreciated.
I finished college in 2019 and received my 1099-Q and 1098-T.
The Box 1 (total gross distribution) on my 1099-Q is a few hundred less than Box 1 (Payments Received for qualified tuition and related expenses) of my 1098-T.
However, when I subtract Box 5 (scholarships) from my Box 1 (Payments Received for qualified tuition and related expenses) on the 1098-T, the total gross distribution on my 1099-Q ends up exceeding the remaining amount by a few hundred. Therefore, to my understanding, I owe taxes on this excess.
This brings me to my current confusion. Do I still qualify for AOTC? TT and an IRS survey says yes, but I've read articles on TT that say if I use a 529 to pay for expenses, I am ineligible. Another question is how do I actually file this excess amount? TT articles say to mark it as "Other Income", but where is this "Other Income" field? I didn't receive a 1099-MISC or anything.
Do I just report the excess amount on the 1099-Q subsection? This doesn't make sense as TT asks for the box values. Given the amount I owe after filling that subsection using the box values - not the excess - I'm worried that the system thinks I used all of funds on Box 1 in the 1099-Q on ineligible education expenses.
