Publication 970 |
2000 Tax Year |
Who Can Claim the Credit?
Generally, you can claim the Hope credit if you pay qualified
tuition and related expenses of higher education for an
eligible student who is either yourself, your spouse, or a
dependent for whom you claim an exemption on your tax
return. Qualified tuition and related expenses are defined later under
What Expenses Qualify? Eligible students are defined later
under Who Is an Eligible Student?
Dependent for whom you claim an exemption.
You claim an exemption for a person if you list his or her name on
line 6c, Form 1040 (or Form 1040A).
Expenses of a dependent.
If there are higher education costs for your dependent for a year,
either you or your dependent, but not both of you, can claim a Hope
credit for that dependent's expenses for that year.
Parent of a Dependent Student
Expenses paid by dependent.
If an eligible student is your dependent, treat any expenses paid
by the student as if you had paid them. Include these expenses when
figuring the amount of your Hope credit.
Qualified tuition and related expenses paid directly to an eligible
educational institution for your dependent under a court-approved
divorce decree are treated as paid by your dependent.
Expenses paid by others.
If someone other than you, your spouse, or your dependent (such as
a relative or former spouse) makes a payment directly to an eligible
educational institution to pay for an eligible student's qualified
tuition and related expenses, the student is treated as receiving the
payment from the other person. The student is treated as paying the
qualified tuition and related expenses to the institution. If the
student is your dependent, you are considered to have paid the
expenses.
Example.
Ms. Allen makes a payment directly to an eligible educational
institution in 2000 for her grandson Todd's qualified tuition and
related expenses. For purposes of claiming a Hope credit, Todd is
treated as receiving the money as a gift from Ms. Allen and, in turn,
paying his qualified tuition and related expenses himself.
If Todd is not listed as a dependent on anyone's return, only Todd
can use the payment to claim a Hope credit.
If anyone, such as his parents, lists him as a dependent on their
tax return, whoever lists him as a dependent may be able to use the
expenses to claim a Hope credit. In this case, Todd cannot claim a
Hope credit.
Who Is an Eligible Student?
For purposes of the Hope credit, an eligible student is a student
who meets all of the following requirements.
Who Is an Eligible Student?
- Did not have expenses that were used to figure a Hope credit
in any 2 earlier years.
- Had not completed the first 2 years of
postsecondary education (generally, the freshman and sophomore years
of college) before 2000.
- Was enrolled at least half-time in a program that
leads to a degree, certificate, or other recognized educational
credential for at least one academic period beginning in
2000.
- Was free of any federal or state felony conviction for
possessing or distributing a controlled substance as of the end of
2000.
Completion of first 2 years.
A student who was awarded 2 years of academic credit for
postsecondary work completed before 2000 has completed the first 2
years of postsecondary education. This student would not be an
eligible student for purposes of the Hope credit.
Any academic credit awarded solely on the basis of the student's
performance on proficiency examinations is disregarded in determining
whether the student has completed 2 years of postsecondary education.
Enrolled at least half-time.
A student was enrolled at least half-time if the student was taking
at least half the normal full-time work load for his or her course of
study.
The standard for what is half of the normal full-time work load is
determined by each eligible educational institution. However, the
standard may not be lower than standards for half-time established by
the Department of Education under the Higher Education Act of 1965.
Academic period.
An academic period includes a semester, trimester, quarter, or
other period of study (such as a summer school session) as reasonably
determined by an educational institution.
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