Who claims 1095-T for college tuition paid by a relative?

You can absolutely claim education tax benefits on your return if the 1095-T is in your name, even if someone else paid your tuition. The IRS treats this as though your grandmother gave you a gift, and then you used that gift to pay your tuition. Since you're not being claimed as a dependent, you're eligible for either the American Opportunity Credit (up to $2,500) or the Lifetime Learning Credit (up to $2,000) depending on your situation. The AOTC is generally better if you're in your first four years of college. This is actually a common situation - many students have parents or relatives who pay their tuition but the student claims the tax benefit since the form is in their name and they're not a dependent.

I was in almost the exact same situation last year and was super confused about my 1095-T. I tried figuring it out myself but kept getting conflicting info. I finally used https://taxr.ai to upload my form and got a clear answer in minutes. They explained that since I wasn't a dependent and the form was in my name, I could claim the education credit even though my aunt paid my tuition. The system analyzed my specific situation and showed me exactly which education credit to claim and how much I qualified for. Saved me from leaving money on the table - I ended up getting an extra $1,800 on my refund!

Just wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai after I posted my skeptical comment. I decided to give it a shot with my complicated education credits situation (my parents paid some, scholarship covered part, and I paid some). Honestly, it was way more helpful than I expected! The system clearly explained how the 1098-T affects different credits and showed me which one would give me the biggest refund. It even caught that I was eligible for a state education credit I didn't know about. The explanations were super clear and it saved me hours of research. Definitely recommend for anyone confused about education credits!

If you're having trouble figuring out how to claim your education credits, try calling the IRS directly. I know it sounds obvious, but when I had a similar situation last year, I spent WEEKS trying to get through to them on the phone. Kept getting disconnected or waiting on hold forever. Eventually I found this service called https://claimyr.com that got me through to an IRS agent in under 20 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed that since the 1095-T was in my name and I wasn't a dependent, I could claim the American Opportunity Credit even though my parents paid the tuition. Saved me a ton of stress not having to guess!

Ok I need to eat some crow here. After posting my skeptical comment, I was still desperate to talk to the IRS about my education credits situation, so I tried Claimyr anyway. I'm actually shocked - it worked exactly as described. I got a call back in about 15 minutes with an actual IRS agent on the line. The agent confirmed that since the 1095-T was in my name and I wasn't a dependent, I could claim the education credit regardless of who paid. The agent even explained which boxes on the form I needed to look at to maximize my credit. Worth every penny not to spend hours on hold!

One thing to consider - there are multiple education benefits (American Opportunity Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, and the tuition and fees deduction), and you can only claim one of them. The AOTC is usually the most valuable (up to $2,500 and 40% refundable) but has more restrictions. Make sure you look at all your options to see which gives you the biggest tax benefit. And don't forget that your state might have additional education credits too!

Make sure you're looking at a 1098-T, not a 1095-T! 1095-T is for health insurance coverage, but 1098-T is for tuition payments. Easy to mix up the numbers but they're completely different forms for tax purposes!