Instructions

1

Maintain accurate records and documentation of all educational expenses throughout the course of the tax year, including tuition, books and required fees.
2

Establish a simple alphanumeric code for educational expenses and use it to code all related entries in your check register and credit card statements. For instance, you might write "Col-Exp" on any check you use to pay for schoolbooks.
3

Total your employee expenses for unreimbursed job-related college tuition and other job-related educational costs on line 4 of IRS Form 2106. Claim the deduction by filing Form 2106 with Schedule A and Form 1040.
4

Use Schedule C to deduct your business educational costs on line 27. claim the deduction by completing Schedule C and filing it with Form 1040.
5

Use the Student Loan Interest Deduction Worksheet in the Form 1040 or 1040A instructions. Claim the deduction by entering the allowable amount on line 33 of Form 1040 or line 18 of Form 1040A.
6

Complete Form 8863 to calculate a Hope Education or Lifetime Learning credit for your dependent students. Enter the credit on line 50 of Form 1040 or line 31 of Form 1040A. Student-dependent eligibility for these credits is limited to 2 years per student.