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1098-T Frequently Asked Questions

We cannot stress enough the importance of reviewing the IRS website and IRS Publication 970 or seeking counsel from a tax professional for advice. Saint Xavier University cannot provide tax advice.

 

What is a 1098-T?

The purpose of the 1098-T is to help you and/or your tax professional determine if you are eligible for the American Opportunity Credit or the Lifetime Learning Credit. The 1098-T is informational; you are not required to attach IRS Form 1098-T to your tax return. Note that most foreign students or nonresident aliens for tax purposes do not need Form 1098-T for any purpose.

Claiming the Education Credits on Your Individual Tax Return

You should use the information on the Form 1098-T in conjunction with your own payment records to complete your individual tax return. If you have questions about how to compute an education tax credit, consult your tax professional or refer to the IRS Publication 970.

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the 1098-T form.

QTRE stands for Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses. Generally, QTREs include tuition and mandatory fee charges. For 1098-T purposes, only those QTRE charges that relate to the academic terms that occur during the calendar months January through December are reportable in any given reporting year. QTREs do not include housing, meal plans, transportation or insurance charges. To learn more about QTREs, please refer to the IRS website.

By January 31, 1098-T forms are mailed to qualifying students' permanent addresses on file with the University.

You can securely electronically access a copy of your Form 1098-T anytime on mySXU. If students have trouble accessing their 1098-T, they can call 773-298-3046.

There are several possibilities:

  1. You did not make any payments in the reporting calendar year that were applied to Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses (QTREs).
  2. The IRS does not require SXU to send you one if your total scholarship and grants (Box 5) is greater than or equal to the total payments received (Box 1).
  3. We do not have a valid permanent address on file for you. You are classified as a non-resident alien.

The single most important information on the form is your Social Security Number.

You must submit a written request to change or correct your SSN by mail or in person to the Registrar's Office. You may be required to supply a signed, legible copy of your Social Security card or complete Form W-9S (Request for Student's or Borrower's Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification). Form W-9S is the official IRS form used to state your SSN. You need only complete Part I of this form when requesting a 1098-T. Enter your SSN in the spaces marked "Taxpayer identification number."

How to Read a 1098-T

Box 1 payments include any credits that are applied to your student account posted during the calendar that paid for Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses (QTREs). These include cash, check, wire, credit card payments as well as any loans, scholarships and grants.

The QTREs that are paid are typically those related to the academic terms that occur between January and December of the reporting year.

These amounts would be reduced by any reimbursements or refunds made during the reporting calendar year that relate to those payments received during that reporting year.

Box 2 is reserved for future use.

Box 3 is reserved for future use.

This box shows any adjustment made for qualified tuition and related expenses reported on a prior year Form 1098-T. This amount may reduce any allowable education credit claimed for the prior year, which may result in an increase in tax liability for the year of the refund. See "recapture" in the index to Pub. 970 to report a reduction in your education credit or tuition and fees deduction.

This box contains the sum of all scholarships SXU administered and processed for the student's account during the calendar year. Scholarships that pay for tuition (qualified scholarships) as well as for housing, books, and other expenses (non-qualified scholarships) will be included in this amount. Tuition waivers and payments received from third parties that are applied to student accounts for educational expenses are included in this box.

Decreases or refunds of scholarship amounts related to scholarships reported in a previous year are included in this box. This amount is reported as a positive number per IRS requirements. However, it is actually a decrease in the amount that was reported on a prior year 1098-T.

This box will be checked if the amount reported in Box 1 includes Payments Received and posted to a student account in the current year that pay for a semester beginning in the next calendar year. 

Box 7 will be checked to indicate that this is the case.