1098-Ts Explained

What is a 1098-T?

The form known as a 1098-T is an informational return that Andrews University is required to produce by IRS regulations.  It can be used to help determine if you qualify for certain educational tax benefits.  You are not required to submit a copy of this form with your taxes.  The information provided below is for general assistance related to Form 1098-T and should not be construed as tax advice.  For more information about the tax benefits you may qualify for, please consult IRS Publication 970 (available at www.irs.gov) or contact a professional tax advisor.

When and how can a student receive their 1098-T?

In January Andrews University generates a Form 1098-T for students who had qualified tuition and other related expenses billed to them during the previous calendar year.  Forms are printed and mailed each year around the 25th of January (no later than January 31).  The forms are mailed to the student’s home (permanent) address on file at that time.  If the student does not have a valid address in the system, or if the home address is international (with the exception of Canada), the form is generated but not mailed.  Once Andrews University has processed Form 1098-T, students may access it online.  Forms printed from the web are sufficient for use when filing taxes.

What amounts are reported on a 1098-T?

The IRS requires eligible educational institutions to either report “Payments received for qualified tuition and related expenses” (Box 1) or “Amounts billed for qualified tuition and related expenses” (Box 2).  Andrews University reports using the second method, thus your Form 1098-T will not have an amount in Box 1.  Box 2 will show all qualified amounts that were billed to the students account in the calendar year (January 1 – December 31).  Not all amounts billed to the student will qualify.  Examples of items not included are housing, meal charges, and club dues.  Additionally, some expenses which may qualify for certain tax benefits are not billed on the student’s account (e.g. book purchases), and are thus not on Form 1098-T. As well as reporting qualified tuition billed, Form 1098-T will show the total of scholarships or grants (Box 5) which were applied to the student’s account during the calendar year.  Common items which appear in Box 5 are federal and state grants (e.g. Pell Grant), Andrews University scholarships and grants (APS and Andrews Gift), outside scholarships received by the University, and any non-taxable subsidies (educational allowance) received for a student.  Andrews University applies subsidy to a student’s account based on the information we have at the time the payment is received.  If no information is received from either the employer (conference, etc) or the parent, the subsidy must be applied as non-taxable subsidy, and will be included in Box 5 of Form 1098-T.

Why is there no payment information on the 1098-T?

As mentioned above, Andrews University, in compliance with IRS regulations, reports using the Amount Billed (Box 2) method, not the Payments Received (Box 1) method.  However, when computing your educational tax benefits, you may need to know the amounts which were paid.  In addition to referring to your own payment records, it is often helpful to review the student account for the calendar year when calculating the amount you paid.  Student statements are available online in finVue, or by contacting your/your student’s financial advisor.  In general, student or parent loan funds are considered payments made by the student/parent (as such, loans do not appear in Box 5 on Form 1098-T).  For further guidance, please consult your tax advisor and IRS Publication 970, “Tax Benefits for Education.”

Reprints, corrections, and other information

►Students can reprint their Form 1098-T for the current or prior years at the following web link: www.andrews.edu/go/my1098T.

►The online 1098-T form includes a detailed listing of the amounts reported.  This detail is often useful if there are questions about the amounts that appear on the form that was received in the mail.  If you have questions regarding the information on Form 1098-T, please review the detail available online, as well as the student account statement for the calendar year (available through finVue).  Most questions can be answered by viewing these items.

►As the 1098-T is based on calendar year billing activity, corrections are generally not made to the form, but will be reported in either Box 4 or Box 6 of the next year's Form 1098-T.  However, in the event that a corrected form is warranted, or if you have further questions about the amounts on Form 1098-T, please contact your/your student's SFS advisor.  (As requests may be numerous during tax season, email is preferred.)  Andrews University personnel are not authorized to offer tax advice, but can only answer questions as to what amounts appear on Form 1098-T.  Any further questions should be directed to your tax professional.