All Education posts

Re: Reporting 1099-Q under Education but it never asks me how much was used for non-educational expenses and we need to report. How can I add this info?

Hal_Al — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:50:06 GMT

It comes after the 1099-Q interview. Click continue at the 1099-Q summary screen. The next screen should be the Nondependent student information summary. Be sure to answer all the yes/no questions in the 1099-Q interview (mostly no). Leaving some unanswered seems to "upset" TT. Be sure to enter a student name in the 1099-Q section.

I have desktop Deluxe. It could be that online is different/still broken.

You might try deleting the 1099-Q and starting over and use the alternate entry point.

The 1099-Q can be entered either at:

1. Federal Taxes Tab

Deductions & Credits

-Scroll down to:

--Education

--ESA and 529 Qualified Tuition Programs (1099-Q)

2. Federal Wages and income

Scroll down to:

-Less Common Income

-Miscellaneous Income 1099-A, 1099-C (Press start)

-On the next screen, choose ESA and 529 Distributions (1099-Q)

Re: Reporting 1099-Q under Education but it never asks me how much was used for non-educational expenses and we need to report. How can I add this info?

cahasty — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 22:02:01 GMT

Again, thank you for the reply and information. However, I am told that they never reached the

"Nondependent student information summary" screen to be able to edit and finish your instructions. Is there another way they can get to this screen and be able to access the expenses screen? They said they went through the questions multiple times to ensure that they were answering correctly but still did not get to the nondependent student information summary.

Re: Reporting 1099-Q under Education but it never asks me how much was used for non-educational expenses and we need to report. How can I add this info?

Hal_Al — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:21:10 GMT

Despite the current glitches, TurboTax (TT) can handle the situation where the beneficiary is not a dependent and has no educational expenses.

Enter the 1099-Q. When asked who the beneficiary is, answer "Someone else". Enter the beneficiary's name when asked who the student is (even though there is no actual student). Click continue at the 1099-Q summary screen. Click the edit (pencil) symbol at the "Nondependent student information summary" screen. You can leave the "school attendance" screen blank (or check anything, e.g. "college"). You will finally get an "Expenses" screen. Leave it blank (or enter 0 at tuition & enrollment fees).

The taxable amount (box 2 of the 1099-Q) will go on line 8z of schedule 1 with the notation "Qual state (or private) tuition prgm from 1099-Q".

The 10% penalty goes on line 8 of form 5329.

Re: Reporting 1099-Q under Education but it never asks me how much was used for non-educational expenses and we need to report. How can I add this info?

cahasty — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 14:19:34 GMT

I appreciate your replies and information. Thank you. I have one last question, a family member with a similar but slightly different situation. They need to report all 1099–Q distributions as non-educational. Their child no longer lives at home, is not claimed as their dependent, has not been a student for over two years and therefore does not have a 1098–T. With the glitch with 529’s in TurboTax, how would they go about reporting the full distribution so that they can properly pay taxes on that amount? (They are using the online version only for the first time). I just want to be sure I’m sharing the correct information with them for filing.

Re: I am adding a 1098-T for 1child. The Desktop version says: We currently don't support educati...

LenaH — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 20:33:04 GMT

Before entering your 1098-T for your child, please follow the steps below:

If you are using TurboTax Online, follow these steps to get your list of forms. If you are using TurboTax Desktop, switch to Forms mode (click Forms in the upper right area of your screen).
Look for the Student Info Worksheets (you may see multiple copies from previous years).
Delete the worksheets for children that no longer have education expenses this year.
Try adding the 1098-T for your child again.

If you continue to encounter problems, I would like to take a deeper look at your return. However, I need a diagnostic file which is a copy of your tax return that has all of your personal information removed. You can send one to us by following the directions below:

TurboTax Online:

Sign into your online account.
Locate the Tax Tools on the left-hand side of the screen.
A drop-down will appear. Select Tools
On the pop-up screen, click on “Share my file with agent.”
This will generate a message that a diagnostic file gets sanitized and transmitted to us.
Please provide the Token Number that was generated in the response.

TurboTax Desktop/Download Versions:

Open your return.
Click the Online tab in the black bar across the top of TurboTax and select “Send Tax File to Agent” *
This will generate a message that a diagnostic copy will be created. Click on OK and the tax file will be sanitized and transmitted to us.
Please provide the Token Number (including the dash) that was generated in the response.

*(If using a MAC, go to the menu at the top of the screen, select Help, then, “Send Tax File to Agent”)

Re: Student Loans Discharged or Forgiven under any Federally Authorized Program..I had a federal ...

CatinaT1 — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 13:13:32 GMT

Do you have a question?

Re: Student Loans Discharged or Forgiven under any Federally Authorized Program..I had a federal ...

NoahThomas2026 — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 22:11:47 GMT

I have the forgiveness of student loan due to Income driven...

I live and work in Indiana

Re: 1099-Q box 6 question is worded very confusing--when was the last update to turbotax

JFW3 — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 01:06:19 GMT

TurboTax had the same issue for 2024 taxes and chose not to update the programming for 2025 taxes, using the workaround of not entering a 1099-Q into TT when it does not result in federally taxable income. That means the user needs to know the tax code and not rely on TT's question-and-answer format. It also creates an issue if state taxes treat a 529-to-Roth rollover differently. The difficulty is determining who pays the tax on a non-qualified distribution. It depends on how the check is made out. But that shouldn't prevent programming. If the user has to determine the criteria, the program can ask the questions to get the correct answer. I don't expect TT to update their programming for the 2026 tax year. For whatever reason, TT decided not to update. Once AI gets its bugs worked out and can protect personal information, I'm thinking it will replace most current tax software anyway.

Re: 1099-Q box 6 question is worded very confusing--when was the last update to turbotax

gjoly — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 00:35:12 GMT

I have not seen an update to TurboTax since April 3, 2025. I am sure there has been some updates. I have stopped Turbotax and restarted it. Nothing. I have run check for updates, says there are none. I am rather sure that the program was updated since then. How do I get the latest updates?

I am adding a 1098-T for 1child. The Desktop version says: We currently don't support education expenses for more than 13 people. How can I work around that? It is 1child

sholomb — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 18:28:59 GMT

I only have 1 child that I need to add the 1098-T for. I searched on my Forms and I see only two children that have student worksheets that have been carried over from the previous year. I'm not sure how the system thinks that i am adding this for more than 13 children. Please advise

Re: Can someone help with the enrollment status that must be entered? find it

CatinaT1 — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 14:02:04 GMT

This poster found a workaround. Here is the link: Enrollment status workaround

Re: where to add full time student?

Hal_Al — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 13:56:06 GMT

You will only get the full time student question if the potential dependent's birthdate indicates that they are age 19 to 23.

Re: how do i claim the higher education tuition?

Hal_Al — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 14:15:37 GMT

Here's a post on the five main points on form 1098-T and claiming a tuition credit:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/college-education/discussion/re-what-do-i-do-with-form-1098t/01/3760212#M63114

and the TurboTax article:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/college-education/discussion/education-deductions-credits-and-answers/00/3565294

Re: how do i claim the higher education tuition?

NCperson — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 09:40:54 GMT

@priscilla-cruz57 please be more specific. are these undergraduate or graduate expenses? how old are you? are you a dependent of your parents (or someone else)?

you must have form 1098-T, issued by your college, to determine your Qualified Educational Expenses.

Those expenses are only deductible against the scholarship income. Tuition is otherwise not deductible, but can be used as the basis of either the AOTC (up to $2500) or LLC tax credits (up to $2000).

Re: Why would my freshman college student not qualify as my dependent?

Hal_Al — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 18:01:01 GMT

Being a full time student, not having any income, and you paying everything doesn't satisfy all the dependent rules.

There are two types of dependents, "Qualifying Children"(QC) and Other ("Qualifying Relative" in IRS parlance even though they don't have to actually be related). There is no income limit for a QC but there is an age limit, student status, a relationship test and residence test.

The support test is different for each type. The support test, for a QC, is only that the child didn't provide more than half his own support. The support test for a Qualifying Relative is that the taxpayer provided more than half the relative's support

A child of a taxpayer can still be a “Qualifying Child” (QC) dependent, regardless of his/her income, if:

He is under age 19, or under 24 if a full time student for at least 5 months of the year, or is totally & permanently disabled
He did not provide more than 1/2 his own support. Scholarships are excluded from the support calculation
He lived with the parent (including temporary absences such as away at school) for more than half the year. You can't claim him as a dependent, if he lives with the other parent(or lived with the other parent before going away to school).

A person can still be a Qualifying relative dependent, if not a Qualifying Child, if he meets the 6 tests for claiming a dependent:

Closely Related OR live with the taxpayer ALL year
His/her gross taxable income for the year must be less than $5200 (2025)
The taxpayer must have provided more than 1/2 his support

In either case:

He must be a US citizen or resident of the US, Canada or Mexico
He must not file a joint return with his spouse or be claiming a dependent of his own
He must not be the qualifying child of another taxpayer

See full dependent rules at: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Rules-for-Claiming-a-Dependent-on-Your-Tax-Return/INF12139.html

Re: Why would my freshman college student not qualify as my dependent?

AmyC — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 23:25:14 GMT

Usually a full time student is claimed by the parents. This allows the parents to claim the education credit. Be sure you marked the dependent as a student. Under the age of 24 is not a problem when you support them, their income is not part of the equation.

Why would my freshman college student not qualify as my dependent?

bethyfoofoo — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 23:20:09 GMT

The student is full time, doesn't work, and I pay everything for the student including insurance outside of the grants the student received.

Re: where to add full time student?

xmasbaby0 — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 21:47:57 GMT

If your dependent was a full-time college student, make sure you were careful on the MY INFO screen for “Uncommon situations” and that you indicated there that they were a student.

where to add full time student?

rebe2005 — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 21:34:53 GMT

Re: Reporting 1099-Q under Education but it never asks me how much was used for non-educational expenses and we need to report. How can I add this info?

Hal_Al — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 21:03:17 GMT

Q. I’m unsure how to report non-educational expenses appropriately?

A. You don't report non-educational expenses directly. You enter your educational expenses and let TurboTax calculate the shortfall. See example above.

After entering the 1099-Q, you go to the "Education Expenses and Scholarships (1098-T)" section to enter you expenses, assuming your beneficiary was a student in 2025. Room & board are qualified expenses for the 1099-Q, if the student was half time or more, even if he lives at home.

Q. Our problem is that the majority of funds used were for non-educational expenses.

A. It doesn't matter what you actually spent the money on. It only matters that there were actual ed expenses, during the year that you did not already allocate to other tax benefits (tuition tax credit or tax free scholarship). Room & board are qualified expenses for the tuition tax credit or tax free scholarship.