Can my dependent claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit on small portion of tuition when I don't qualify?

Quick facts:

My daughter was a full-time first-year college student in 2022.
I claim her as my dependent.
I paid most of her tuition from a 529 plan.
I cannot claim the AOTC myself because my income is too high.
My daughter paid a small portion of her tuition, about $900, out of her own pocket and not from any tax-advantaged account, directly to the institution as partial payment of a fully qualified tuition bill.
She has a 1098-T which includes a scholarship amount of about $1000 in box 5.
She is a US citizen with some earned income (well under the AOTC qualifying limit), has a TIN, etc.

Question: Can my daughter claim the AOTC credit on her return in that full $900 amount?

Thank you in advance.

939

Level 15

Apr 5, 2023 10:16:03 AM

No. Dependents are not eligible to claim education credits.

Level 2

Apr 5, 2023 10:33:00 AM

Thank you for the quick reply but that does not appear to be correct according to the IRS:

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf

Bottom of page 19: "If there are qualified education expenses for your dependent during a tax year, either you or your dependent, but not both of you, can claim an American opportunity credit for your dependent's expenses for that year."

Level 15

Apr 5, 2023 10:39:35 AM

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/3262983-who-is-eligible-to-take-the-american-opportunity-tax-credit

Level 2

Apr 5, 2023 10:43:18 AM

Dang, I stand corrected. If I had read the very next couple sentences after what I quoted above I'd know that...lol. Thank you for correcting me.

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Can my dependent claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit on small portion of tuition when I don't qualify?