Reporting 1098-T as a resident alien

[rrou]

Hello! I am a graduate student on F-1 visa, who qualifies as a resident for tax purposes. I received a fellowship from my school with a monthly stipend without working as a TA or RA, so they only gave me a form 1098-T, and I was told that my stipend money isn't taxable. I entered the 1098-T information on Turbotax under Deductions and Credits. The payments received for qualified tuition and related expenses (Box 1) is lower than the amount of scholarships or grants (Box 5). When I tried to continue, I kept getting an error saying something seems to be wrong, it only got fixed when I entered the amount I paid for "Books and materials required to be purchased from the school". The room and board expenses weren't part of the amount in Box 1/Tuition and Enrollment fees since I lived off campus, do I need to report these expenses anywhere? 

[Hal_Al]

The 1098-T is only an informational document. The numbers on it are not required to be entered onto your tax return. However receipt of a 1098-T frequently means you are either eligible for a tuition credit or possibly the student has taxable scholarship income. 

If you claim the tuition credit, you do need to report that you got one or that you qualify for an exception (the TurboTax interview will handle this)

You claim the tuition credit, or report scholarship income, based on your own financial records, not the 1098-T. In the 1098-T screen, click on the link "What if this is not what I paid the school" underneath box 1. You will then be able to enter the actual amounts paid. You will also reach a screen that allows you to adjust the scholarship amount for "amounts not awarded for 2023 expenses".

Or if you find it easier, just change the numbers in boxes 1& 5 to what your records show. The 1098-T that you enter in TT is not sent to the IRS.

If the stipend was not taxable (they usually ARE taxable), the stipend amount should not have been included in box 5 of the 1098-T.