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                                                 Tuition and Fees Deduction                                            OMB No. 1545-0074
Form   8917
(Rev. January 2020)                                 ▶ Attach to Form 1040 or 1040-SR. 
                                                                                                                       Attachment 
Department of the Treasury               ▶ Go to www.irs.gov/Form8917 for the latest information.                      Sequence No.  60
Internal Revenue Service
Name(s) shown on return                                                                                      Your social security number

            Use this form for qualified tuition and fees paid in 2018, 2019, or 2020, and later years if legislation extends the deduction 
           (see instructions). File a separate Form 8917 for each year after 2017 for which you qualify to take the deduction. 
             
▲!         You      can’t take both an education credit from Form 8863 and the tuition and fees deduction from this form for the 
CAUTION
           same student for the same tax year.

Before you begin:            ✔ To see if you qualify for this deduction, see Who Can Take the Deduction in the instructions below. 
                             ✔ If you file Form 1040 or 1040-SR, figure any write-in adjustments.
                               •For    2018: Figure any write-in adjustments to be entered on the dotted line next to Schedule 1 (Form 
                               1040), line 36.
                               • For 2019: Figure any write-in adjustments to be entered on the dotted line next to Schedule 1 (Form 
                               1040 or 1040-SR), line 22.
                               • For 2020 and later years: Figure any write-in adjustments for Schedule 1 (Form 1040 or 1040-SR); see 
                               the Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR.
1                   (a)  Student’s name (as shown on page 1 of your tax return)          (b) Student’s social security (c) Adjusted qualified 
                                                                                         number (as shown on page          expenses (see 
       First name                               Last name                                    1 of your tax return)         instructions)

2      Add the amounts on line 1, column (c), and enter the total .    .        . . .  . .   . . . .     . .       2

3      Enter the amount from your      “total income” line of Form 1040 or
       1040-SR .         . . . .    .  . .   . . .  .       . . . . . .         .     3

4      • For 2018: Enter the total of the amounts on your 2018 Schedule 1 
       (Form 1040), lines 23 through 33, plus any write-in adjustments you 
       entered on the dotted line next to Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 36.
       • For 2019 and 2020: Enter the total of the amounts on your 2019 
       Schedule 1 (Form 1040 or 1040-SR), lines 10 through 20, plus any 
       write-in adjustments you entered on the dotted line next to 
       Schedule 1 (Form 1040 or 1040-SR), line 22.
       • For later years: See www.irs.gov/Form8917 to find out if the line 
       references above for 2019 have changed  .            . . . . . .         .     4

5      Subtract line 4 from line 3.* If the result is more than $80,000 ($160,000 if married filing jointly), 
       stop; you can’t take the deduction for tuition and fees .    .  .        . . .  . .   . . . .     . .       5
       *If you’re filing Form 2555, 2555-EZ, or 4563, or you’re excluding income from Puerto Rico, see 
       Effect of the Amount of Your Income on the Amount of Your Deduction in Pub. 970 to figure the
       amount to enter on line 5.

6      Tuition and fees deduction.       Is the amount on line 5 more than $65,000 ($130,000 if married 
       filing jointly)?

           Yes.     Enter the smaller of line 2, or $2,000.
                                                                . . . .         . . .  . .   . . . .     . .       6
           No.      Enter the smaller of line 2, or $4,000.   }

       Also enter this amount on line 21 of the 2019 and 2020 Schedule 1 (Form 1040 or 1040-SR), or 
       line 34 of the 2018 Schedule 1 (Form 1040). See          www.irs.gov/Form8917     to find out if the line
       references above for 2019 have changed.

For Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see your tax return instructions.                    Cat. No. 37728P               Form 8917 (Rev. 1-2020)

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Form 8917 (Rev. 1-2020) Page 2

General Instructions Who Can Take the Deduction
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless You may be able to take the deduction if you, your spouse, or a
otherwise noted. dependent you claim on your tax return was a student enrolled
at or attending an eligible educational institution. The deduction
What’s New is based on the amount of qualified education expenses you
Deduction extended. The tuition and fees deduction is paid for the student in the current year for academic periods
extended for qualified tuition and fees paid in calendar years beginning in the current year or beginning in the first 3 months
2018, 2019, and 2020. Don’t claim the deduction for expenses of the following year.
paid after 2020 unless the credit is extended again. Use Form Generally, in order to claim the deduction for education
8917 (Rev. January 2020) and these instructions for years after expenses for a dependent, you must have paid the expenses in
2017, unless a newer revision is issued indicating it is the current year and must claim the student as a dependent on
succeeding this revision. your current year tax return (the “Dependents” line of Form 1040
Periodic updating. Form 8917 will no longer be updated or 1040-SR). For additional information, see Pub. 970.
annually. Instead, it will only be updated when necessary. For You can’t claim the tuition and fees deduction if any of the
previous years, use the applicable Form 8917 for that year. following apply.
Example 1. Use the 2017 Form 8917 for your 2017 qualified • Your filing status is married filing separately.
tuition and fees expenses deduction on your 2017 original or • Another person can claim an exemption for you as a
amended return. dependent on his or her tax return. You can’t take the deduction
Form 1040-SR. Form 1040-SR is a new form for 2019 and later even if the other person doesn’t actually claim that exemption.
years, with larger print and available for taxpayers 65 years or • Your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI), as figured on
older. Although it’s often mentioned with Form 1040 on Form line 5, is more than $80,000 ($160,000 if filing a joint return).
8917 and in these instructions, it isn’t available for 2018. • You were a nonresident alien for any part of the year and
didn’t elect to be treated as a resident alien for tax purposes.
Future Developments More information on nonresident aliens can be found in Pub.
For the latest information about developments related to Form 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens.
8917 and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they You can’t claim a tuition and fees deduction for any student if
were published, go to www.irs.gov/Form8917. you or anyone else claims an American opportunity or lifetime
Reminders learning credit (Form 8863) in the current year for expenses of
the student for whom the qualified education expenses were
Form 1098-T requirement. To be eligible to claim the tuition paid. However, a state tax credit won’t disqualify you from
and fees deduction, American opportunity credit, or the lifetime claiming a tuition and fees deduction.
earning credit, the law requires a taxpayer (or a dependent) to
have received a Form 1098-T from an eligible educational Qualified Education Expenses
institution. Generally, qualified education expenses are amounts paid in the
However, a taxpayer may claim one of these education current year for tuition and fees required for the student’s
benefits if the student doesn’t receive a Form 1098-T because enrollment or attendance at an eligible educational institution.
the student’s educational institution isn’t required to send a Required fees include amounts for books, supplies, and
Form 1098-T to the student under existing rules (for example, if equipment used in a course of study if required to be paid to the
the student is a nonresident alien, has qualified education institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance. It doesn’t
expenses paid entirely with scholarships, or has qualified matter whether the expenses were paid in cash, by check, by
education expenses paid under a formal billing arrangement). If a credit or debit card, or with borrowed funds.
student’s educational institution isn’t required to provide a Form Qualified education expenses include nonacademic fees,
1098-T to the student, a taxpayer may claim one of these such as student activity fees, athletic fees, or other expenses
education benefits without a Form 1098-T if the taxpayer unrelated to the academic course of instruction, only if the fee
otherwise qualifies, can demonstrate that the taxpayer (or a must be paid to the institution as a condition of enrollment or
dependent) was enrolled at an eligible educational institution, attendance. However, fees for personal expenses (described
and can substantiate the payment of qualified tuition and related below) are never qualified education expenses.
expenses.
Qualified education expenses don’t include amounts paid for
Purpose of Form the following.
Use Form 8917 (Rev. January 2020) to figure and take the • Personal expenses. This means room and board, insurance,
deduction for tuition and fees expenses paid in calendar years medical expenses (including student health fees), transportation,
2018, 2019, and 2020, and later years if the deduction is and other similar personal, living, or family expenses.
extended. • Any course or other education involving sports, games, or
This deduction is based on adjusted qualified education hobbies, or any noncredit course, unless such course or other
expenses paid to an eligible educational institution education is part of the student’s degree program or helps the
(postsecondary). See Qualified Education Expenses, later, for student acquire or improve job skills.
more information. Qualified education expenses don’t include any expenses for
You may be able to take the American opportunity credit which you take any other deduction, such as on Schedule A
TIP or lifetime learning credit for your education expenses (Form 1040 or 1040-SR) or Schedule C (Form 1040 or 1040-SR).
instead of the tuition and fees deduction. See Form
8863, Education Credits, and Pub. 970, Tax Benefits for
Education, for more information about these credits.

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Form 8917 (Rev. 1-2020) Page 3
You may receive Form 1098-T, Tuition Statement, from the Generally, any scholarship or fellowship grant is treated as
institution reporting either payments received in the current year tax-free educational assistance. However, a scholarship or
or amounts billed in the current year. However, the amounts fellowship grant isn’t treated as tax-free educational assistance
may be different from the amount you paid (or are treated as to the extent the student includes it in gross income (the student
having paid). In completing Form 8917, use only the amounts may or may not be required to file a tax return) for the year the
you actually paid (plus any amounts you’re treated as having scholarship or fellowship grant is received and either:
paid) in the current year (reduced, as necessary, as described in • The scholarship or fellowship grant (or any part of it) must be
Adjusted Qualified Education Expenses, later). See Pub. 970 for applied (by its terms) to expenses (such as room and board)
more information on Form 1098-T. other than qualified education expenses as defined in Qualified
Qualified education expenses paid directly to the institution education expenses in Pub. 970; or
by someone other than you or the student are treated as paid to • The scholarship or fellowship grant (or any part of it) may be
the student and then paid by the student to the institution. applied (by its terms) to expenses (such as room and board)
other than qualified education expenses as defined in Qualified
Academic Period education expenses in Pub. 970.
An academic period is any quarter, semester, trimester, or any Tax-free educational assistance treated as a refund. Some
other period of study as reasonably determined by an eligible tax-free educational assistance received after the current year
educational institution. If an eligible educational institution uses may be treated as a refund of qualified education expenses paid
credit hours or clock hours and doesn’t have academic terms, in the current year. This tax-free educational assistance is any
each payment period may be treated as an academic period. tax-free educational assistance received by you or anyone else
after the current year for qualified education expenses paid on
Prepaid Expenses behalf of a student in the current year (or attributable to
Qualified education expenses paid in the current year for an enrollment at an eligible educational institution during the
academic period that begins in the first 3 months of the current year).
following year can be used in figuring the tuition and fees If this tax-free educational assistance is received after the
deduction for the current year only. current year but before you file your current year income tax
Example 2. Qualified education expenses paid in 2018 for an return, see Refunds received after the current year but before
academic period that begins in the first 3 months of 2019 can your income tax return is filed, later. If this tax-free educational
be used in figuring the tuition and fees deduction for 2018 only. assistance is received after the current year and after you file
See Academic Period, earlier. your current year income tax return, see Refunds received after
the current year and after your income tax return is filed, later.
Example 3. If you pay $2,000 in December 2019 for qualified
tuition for the 2020 winter quarter that begins in January 2020, Refunds. A refund of qualified education expenses may reduce
you can use that $2,000 in figuring the tuition and fees adjusted qualified education expenses for the tax year or may
deduction for 2019 only (if you meet all the other requirements). require you to include some or all of the refund in your gross
income for the year the refund is received. See Pub. 970 for
You can’t use any amount you paid in the previous or more information. Some tax-free educational assistance
▲CAUTION! future year to figure the qualified education expenses you received after the current year may be treated as a refund. See
use to figure your current year tuition and fees Tax-free educational assistance treated as a refund, earlier.
deduction.
Refunds received in the current year.Foreach student,
Example 4. You can’t use any amount you paid in 2017 or figure the adjusted qualified education expenses for the current
2019 to figure the qualified deduction expenses you use to year by adding all the qualified education expenses paid in the
figure your 2018 tuition and fees deduction. current year and subtracting any refunds of those expenses
received from the eligible educational institution during the
Adjusted Qualified Education Expenses current year.
For each student, reduce the qualified education expenses paid Refunds received after the current year but before your
by or on behalf of that student under the following rules. The income tax return is filed. If anyone receives a refund after the
result is the amount of adjusted qualified education expenses current year of qualified education expenses you paid on behalf
for each student. of a student in the current year and the refund is received before
Tax-free educational assistance. For tax-free educational you file your current year income tax return, reduce the amount
assistance received in the current year, reduce the qualified of qualified education expenses for the current year by the
educational expenses for each academic period by the amount amount of the refund.
of tax-free educational assistance allocable to that academic Refunds received after the current year and after your
period. See Academic Period, earlier. income tax return is filed. If anyone receives a refund after the
Tax-free educational assistance includes: current year of qualified education expenses you paid on behalf
of a student in the current year and the refund is received after
1. The tax-free part of any scholarship or fellowship grant you file your current year income tax return, you may need to
(including Pell grants); include some or all of the refund in your gross income for the
2. The tax-free part of any employer-provided educational year the refund is received. See Pub. 970 for more information.
assistance; Coordination with Coverdell education savings accounts
3. Veterans’ educational assistance; and and qualified tuition programs. Reduce your qualified
4. Any other educational assistance that is excludable from education expenses by any qualified education expenses used
gross income (tax free), other than as a gift, bequest, devise, or to figure the exclusion from gross income of (a) interest received
inheritance. under an education savings bond program, or (b) any
distribution from a Coverdell education savings account or
You may be able to increase the combined value of your qualified tuition program (QTP). For a QTP, this applies only to
TIP tuition and fees deduction and certain educational the amount of tax-free earnings that were distributed, not to the
assistance if the student includes some or all of the recovery of contributions to the program.
educational assistance in income in the year it is received. For
details, see Pub. 970.

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Form 8917 (Rev. 1-2020) Page 4

Eligible Educational Institution Specific Instructions
An eligible educational institution is generally any accredited
public, nonprofit, or proprietary (private) college, university, Line 1
vocational school, or other postsecondary institution. Also, the Complete columns (a) through (c) on line 1 for each student for
institution must be eligible to participate in a student aid whom you elect to take the tuition and fees deduction.
program administered by the Department of Education. Virtually Note: If you have more than three students who qualify for the
all accredited postsecondary institutions meet this definition. tuition and fees deduction, enter “See attached” next to line 1
An eligible educational institution also includes certain and attach a statement with the required information for each
educational institutions located outside the United States that additional student. Include the amounts from line 1, column(c),
are eligible to participate in a student aid program administered for all students in the total you enter on line 2.
by the Department of Education.
The educational institution should be able to tell you if it Column (c)
TIP is an eligible institution. For each student, enter the amount of adjusted qualified
education expenses. The expenses must have been paid for the
Additional Information student in the current year for academic periods beginning in
the current year but before April 1 of the following year.
See Pub. 970 for more information about the tuition and fees
deduction.

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