Can I claim my child's private school tuition?

[Dominatetc1]

My son goes to a private school. Can I claim his tuition?

[evelynm]

Federal tax law doesn’t allow you to deduct private school tuition.

If your child is attending a private school for special needs, you may be able to get a tax break on your K-12 private school tuition. To qualify, you’ll need a physician’s referral proving that your child requires access to specialized private education. And, if your child qualifies, you may also be able to deduct the cost of special tutoring or training in addition to tuition.   See link below for further details:

Sending kids to private school 

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

Good afternoon, Dominstetc1! 

 Thank you for joining us!

Generally, you cannot claim your son's private school tuition as a tax deduction on your federal income tax return. A few states do allow deductions for K-12 education and/or home schooling expenses. 

As of May 2023, the following states offer tax benefits for parents who pay private school tuition for their children: Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Ohio, South Carolina and Wisconsin.

Private school tuition is typically not tax deductible under federal tax law, except in cases where the child has special needs and requires access to special needs private education. If a physician's referral is provided to support this, the expenses may qualify as deductible medical expenses.

Please keep in mind, If your child attends a daycare program before or after school, whether at a public or private school, you may qualify for a child care cedit, if qualified.

Also worth noting,  you could potentially  avoid paying taxes on the earnings from a Coverdell Education Savings Account (ESA) or make tax-free withdrawals from a Qualified Tuition Plan (529 Plan) by using  the funds to cover qualified K through 12th grade education expenses.

Please see the following for more information:

• Tax Tips When Sending Kids to Private or Public Schools 
•  Child and Dependent Care 

Please feel free to reach backout with any additional questions or concerns you might have!

Have a great rest of your day!

Terri Lynn, EA

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[asb42]

If I live in one of the states that allow me to deduct my child's private school tuition, where would I list?  I have read that my state has allowed it since 2018, but do not see it on any of the scheduled forms.  Please advise

[xmasbaby0]

@asb42    Anything about your child's private school tuition will be on the state return if your state has any sort of credit for K-12 education.

EDUCATION EXPENSES

Education expenses for grades K-12 are not deductible on your Federal return, whether for private, public, or home schooling, nor are the expenses for tutoring, after school lessons or after school activities, such as dance lessons, sports, etc.  Some states allow deductions/credits for K-12 education and/or home schooling expenses; if your state has these deductions available, you will be prompted to enter them when you prepare your state return.  (As far as I know, the states that offer any sort of K-12 deductions/credits are Arizona,  Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin)

[MonikaK1]

Under federal tax law, private school tuition isn’t tax deductible unless your child is attending a private school for special needs. If a physician’s referral proves that your child requires access to special needs private education, the expenses could qualify as deductible medical expenses. See this TurboTax tips article for more information.

See this help article for information to contact your state tax agency for more information if yours is one of the states that allows tax benefits on the individual tax return for private school tuition. If there are tax benefits in your state, this should be addressed somewhere in the TurboTax state interview.

@asb42