Frequently Asked Questions:

The 1098-T Form reports information on what you paid for Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses (QTRE) at a college or university. All colleges and universities are required by the Internal Revenue Service to provide you with this information. It serves to alert students that they may be eligible for federal income tax education credits such as the Lifetime Learning Credit and the American Opportunity Credit (previously the Hope Scholarship Credit) as part of their federal income tax return. IRS Publication 970, "Tax Benefits for Higher Education," as well as Chapter 35 of IRS Publication 17 (Your Federal Income Tax Guide for Individuals), provide additional information on these credits. There is no IRS requirement that you must claim the tuition and fees deduction or an education credit. Claiming education tax benefits is a voluntary decision for those who may qualify.

The 1098-T contains a combination of student personal data, such as name, address, Social Security Number (SSN), and institutionally provided enrollment data, such as status as a graduate or undergraduate student, along with whether the student was enrolled at least half-time during the calendar year. The IRS will use this data to help determine who is eligible for the education tax credits.

1098-Ts will be issued for students meeting the IRS reporting criteria.

 

Current 1098-T form from irs.gov

 

• Box 1: Used by Texas Tech University starting in 2018; reflects payments received during the calendar year not to exceed the total of QTRE charged
• Box 2: IRS no longer uses (2011 to 2017 Texas Tech University used to report by charges billed)
• Box 3: Reserved by IRS for future use
• Box 4: Adjustments made to a prior year's billed qualified tuition and related expenses (if applicable)
• Box 5: Scholarships, Grants, or most Third Party payments (excluding payments from 529 plans)
• Box 6: Adjustments made to a prior year's scholarships or grants (if applicable)
• Box 7: Box is checked if the amount in Box 1 includes payments for an academic period beginning January - March of the following tax year.
• Box 8: Box is checked if you are enrolled half time or greater
• Box 9: Box is checked if you were enrolled as a graduate student

The IRS no longer allows reporting of amounts billed, therefore this box is blank for ALL students.

 

Qualified tuition and related expenses (QTRE) are those that a student must pay that are within the IRS guidelines. This is a chart of Qualified Expenses vs. Not-Qualified Expenses for your reference. Only payments that pay QTRE will show in Box 1.

Qualified Expenses Tuition Mandatory Fees Special Instruction Fees (with some exceptions) Elect to Pay Fee Program Fees Professional Program Fees Orientation Fee Consortium Fee

Non-Qualified Expenses Housing Meals Field Trip Fees Health Insurance (if required) ID replacements Student Health Key Replacements Raider Cash / Dining Bucks

Adjustment amounts reported in Box 4 and Box 6 may change any allowable education credit you may have claimed for a prior year. We encourage you to seek the advice of a tax advisor for specific information concerning the handling of prior-year adjustments.

 

The IRS allows various exclusions from issuing a 1098-T, such as:

• Student's scholarship or grants amount (Box 5) is greater than their payments for QTRE (Box 1)
• Student's qualified tuition and related expenses are covered by a formal billing arrangement directly between TTU and the student's employer or government entity
• A student took courses for which no academic credit is offered, even if the student is otherwise enrolled in a degree program
• The student is not a resident of the United States and Forms can be provided upon request within 2 weeks

Payments made for Spring 2023 charges made prior to January 1, 2023, will not be included in the 2023 1098-T form.

 

Payments made for Spring 2024 charges made prior to January 1, 2024 will not be included in either the 2023 or the 2024 1098-T form. Charges for spring 2024 QTRE are reported in 2024, so payments must also occur in 2024 to be reportable. In certain instances, you may be able to use your personal payment documentation to support claiming a tax credit even when it is not reported on the 1098-T, but we encourage you to consult with a qualified tax advisor before doing so.

 

Federal regulations mandate these items to be postmarked no later than January 31st to all eligible students with a valid Social Security Number on file and an address in the United States. Online access to this document may be available before that via Raiderlink.

 

We must file a 1098-T for you even if you did not share your Social Security Number (SSN) with Texas Tech University and it is not included in your student record.

• To add your SSN to the document, you must share your Social Security Card with the University Registrar's Office, either in person at West Hall 103 or via the Registrar Student Dashboard. The University Registrar Office can be reached at 806.742.3661. After doing so, you must notify Student Business Services so that we know to update your 1098-T.

You may not have received a 1098-T if you have moved and not changed your address in Raiderlink prior to the first week of January. To find out if we received a returned 1098-T for you, starting Feb. 28th, you can email us or call our office at 806.742.3272. You may also use the steps above to retrieve the document online with Raiderlink.

• You may not have had any payments to current QTRE items or any payments on your account in 2021

Beginning February 28th, requests for a duplicate 1098-T can be made by emailing tax.1098T@ttu.edu from your TTU email account. Please include your student R# in your email.

 

Requests for duplicate 1098-T can be made by emailing tax.1098T@ttu.edu. Please include your student R# and specify the tax year of requested duplicate 1098-T tax form.

 

Employees of Texas Tech University cannot offer assistance with tax form preparation, nor supply advice on what can or cannot be claimed. Please do not contact the University for that purpose.

The responsibility for your individual tax circumstances rests with the taxpayer alone, and Texas Tech University is not responsible for your interpretation of this information. You are encouraged to refer to federal Publication 970 from the IRS.

 

Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), only the student or those persons the student has authorized via the consent of a FERPA document, may contact the Student Business Services for information or assistance regarding the 1098-T form. To grant permission to another individual, please complete the FERPA form.

 

Texas Tech University began reporting by payments received for the 2018 calendar year. The payments are those for Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses (QTRE) – See the FAQ for a breakdown of Qualified and Non-Qualified Expenses (excludes housing, meals and other items). We only report payments posted in the calendar year 2018; However, Spring 2019 charges are considered QTRE for 2019 so any payments received in 2018 for those charges will not be reported on your 1098-T. As always, payments reported on a 1098-T are based on receipt during the calendar/tax year.

• 2017 and prior - we reported by charges billed in those respective calendar years (not necessarily when the semester occurred)