Office of Student Accounts and Accounting

Tax Relief Act of 1997
Taxpayer Benefits for Higher Education

Explanation of Qualifying Expenses for
Education Tax Credits

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Publication 970 and IRS Form 8863 explain which tuition and fee expenses qualify for education tax credits. At The College at Brockport, the following expenses would meet the criteria specified by the IRS:

Tuition
Art Lab Fees
Brockport Student Government Fee
Clinical Insurance Fee
College Fee
Technology Fee
Textbooks

IRS specifies that in order for qualifying expenses to be used for tax credits, they must be paid "out of pocket" during the tax year (normally January 1 - December 31) of the taxpayer taking the deduction. At The College at Brockport, the following payments would meet the criteria specified by the IRS:

Cash
Check
Credit Card
Student Loans
Parent Loans

IRS further specifies that qualifying expenses that were paid must be reduced by grants used to pay those expenses. At Brockport, examples of grants include:

Pell Grant
Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)
Aid for Part-Time Study (APTS)
State University Supplemental Tuition Assistance (SUSTA)
Scholarships
SUNY Academic Achievement Awards (SAAA)
VESID
Tuition Waivers
Fellowships
Research Grants
Employee Tuition Support

In providing information to students, The College at Brockport takes the following steps:

1. Determine total qualifying expenses for the tax year (January 1 - December 31) for tuition, college fee, Brockport Student Government fee, and technology fee.
2. Determine qualifying expenses, which have been paid during the year. This amount includes both "out of pocket" payments AND grants. This total is displayed on the Online Services pages as EXP.
3. Determine grants, which must reduce the qualifying expenses that have been paid. This amount is displayed on the Online Services page as GNT.

   Note: If the total qualifying expenses has been paid by "out of pocket" payments, i.e., cash, checks, loans, etc., no deduction for grants will be displayed.

The information provided to students in the Online Services page relating to education tax credits is provided for assistance only. The College at Brockport is not a tax advisor. Students or other persons claiming education tax credits should do so only after consulting IRS Publication 970, IRS Form 8863, and/or in consultation with a qualified tax advisor.

Updated September 26th, 2012.

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Events

Mon, Sep 16

Zotero (Education focus)
5 pm - 6:15 pm

Tue, Sep 17

Naturalization Ceremony
11 am - noon

Fri, Sep 20

Leadership Program Kick-off
3:30 pm - 5 pm

Wed, Oct 2

ADP Distinguished Speaker Series "The Audacity to Heal: Our Rape Culture"
7 pm - 9 pm

Thu, Oct 3

Faculty/Staff Campaign Kickoff
noon - 1:30 pm