Incorrect 1098-T

[socalstudent86]

my 1098-T has me listed as receiving over $19,000 in aid but when i add up all my aid from 2020 including both school years it only comes up to $15,800? And my tuition paid is only listed as 14,000 when it should be closer to 16,000 from when I add up all my fees on my student portal.  I was also still required to pay over $1000 each quarter out of pocket despite my financial aid apparently being much higher than my fees? Are there aspects of this I’m not understanding, I attend a UC school so I find it hard to imagine they would make a mistake? If I were to calculate this information myself would I be penalized for not following the 1098-T? If not, what exactly would I add up onto my fees and award? 

[LinaJ2020 · Accepted solution]

No, you will not be penalized for not following what the Form 1098-T reports.  You school might have reported your information incorrectly on the Form 1098-T.  This often happens.  You should report the actual amount of tuition you paid in 2020. In the program, you are allowed to make an adjustment under box 1.  It is important to enter the actual amount of tuition expenses you paid.  This allow the program to calculate your education tax break correctly on either a Form 8863 or Form 8917.  Here are the steps to make adjustment on the Form 1098-T:

In TurboTax online, 

• Sign in to your account, select Pick up where you left off
• At the right upper corner, in the search box, type in "1098t" and Enter
• Select Jump to 1098t
• Follow prompts
• On the screen, under box 1, check the box This is not what," Student' Name paid to school"
• Enter the actual amount you paid
• See image 

If you have paid qualified education expenses and meet certain requirements, you may qualify for an education tax break including the American Opportunity Tax Credit AOTC, Lifetime Learning Credit or Tuition & Fees deduction. To see if you qualify, here are the links: 

Qualified expenses

Deductions

Credits

[socalstudent86]

Thank you! That relaxes me! I was also wondering, if the school charged me for fees in 2019, but financial aid and any of my payments were not applied until 2020 would I include those fees in my total paid as well? I believe that is the reason they placed my financial aid so high but kept my tuition so low.

[KrisD15]

You can adjust the amount of the scholarship that went to expenses of a different year, OR increase the amount for Box 1. 

[Aniya1028]

I was wondering what if I accidentally submit my taxes with my old 1098 t form for this year 2024. My 2022 form was about 4,600 and my 2023 was really 11,000 or more. What should I do? Do I have to amend it or leave it as is? I don’t think it’s giving me the option to go back because I submitted it, my school website stated that it was year 2023 but it was not. I just realized. How long does it take for an amend please help ASAP!

[MonikaK1]

If you already filed your 2023 return, and you need to amend it, you will need to wait until the amendment Form 1040X is available. 

See this tool for information about the availability of forms in TurboTax. As of now, Form 1040X for amended returns is projected to become available on February 14, 2024, subject to change.

There are times when you should amend your return and times when you shouldn't. Here are some common situations that call for an amendment:

• You realized you missed out on claiming a tax deduction or credit.
• You accidentally claimed the wrong tax filing status.
• You need to add or remove a dependent.
• You forgot to claim taxable income on your tax return.
• You realize you claimed an expense, deduction, or credit that you weren't eligible to claim.

See this article and this one for more information on filing an amended return with TurboTax.

The IRS does match information on filed returns with Forms 1098-T filed by the educational institutions, so you might get a notice. If you receive an IRS notice before you are able to amend your return, respond to them promptly, and you can provide the correct information instead of amending.