American Opportunity tax credit.

[carol b]

This is one of those credits that you don't know are available to you or your family unless someone points it out to you.

American Opportunity Credit Helps Pay for First Four Years of College
More parents and students can use a federal education credit to offset part of the cost of college under the new American Opportunity Credit. This credit modifies the existing Hope credit for tax years 2009 and 2010, making it available to a broader range of taxpayers. Income guidelines are expanded and required course materials are added to the list of qualified expenses. Many of those eligible will qualify for the maximum annual credit of $2,500 per student.

There are some limitations that you need to be aware of and please check with your tax preparer to see if you qualify.

Though most taxpayers who pay for post-secondary education qualify for the American Opportunity Credit, some do not. The limitations include a married person filing a separate return, regardless of income, joint filers whose MAGI is $180,000 or more and, finally, single taxpayers, heads of household and some widows and widowers whose MAGI is $90,000 or more.
There are some post-secondary education expenses that do not qualify for the American Opportunity Credit. They include expenses paid for a student who, as of the beginning of the tax year, has already completed the first four years of college. That’s because the credit is only allowed for the first four years of a post-secondary education.
Students with more than four years of post-secondary education still qualify for the lifetime learning credit and the tuition and fees deduction.

I hope that this information is helpful to you and that it makes you feel better about spending your money to go to school. It is difficult enough to make that decision and getting some money back for going sure will make it easier to decide to go back to school.

[Rae74]

That is how I am putting my daughter through college right now.She just started a few weeks ago.

The guidance councelor at the school helped me find this opportunity for my daughter.

She was very helpful to us and really made it easy to get everything that we needed and get it all taken care of.She is enrooled and has begun school now and loveing it.