“Filling out the right information on your tax return can save thousands of dollars for college students and their families,” said Terrence Thomas, Chief Marketing Officer for eLearners.com, which connects prospective students with online education providers. “There are several programs available to help students, so make sure to look into what programs work for you.”
Nationwide, several tax credit and deduction programs exist to help make a college education a more affordable option. For example:
Tuition and Fees Tax Deduction
The Tuition and Fees Tax Deduction allows a family to get up to a $4,000 tax deduction. This deduction does not require tax filers to itemize the deduction and can be used for tuition and enrollment fees; room and board and transportation are not deductible.
Hope Scholarship Tax Credit
The Hope Scholarship Tax Credit subtracts from the amount a family owes, opposed to a tax deduction, which subtracts from taxable income. For 2007, a family can get up to $1,650 in tax credits for each eligible dependent, with the exact amount depending on a family’s income. This tax credit is only for students that are still working on their first two years of undergraduate study.
Lifetime Learning Credit
The Lifetime Learning Credit doesn’t have as many restrictions as the Hope Scholarship Tax Credit and is available for any college, or online college student; with no requirement for course load or number of years in college. The credit is 20 percent of tuition and fees and maxes out at $2,000.
“Statistics show that people with a college degree make more money, but they don’t have to wait until graduation to start enjoying the financial benefits of a college education,” continued Thomas. “This is the perfect time to start taking advantage of all the benefits higher education offers, and even set yourself up for tax breaks next year.”
For more information on tax breaks and online financial aid options log onto http://debtfree.elearners.com/
About eLearners.com®
The eLearners.com website is one of several high visibility, high-quality prospecting tools offered by EducationDynamics, LLC. Since 1999, eLearners.com has been successfully connecting learners to online education, including online master degree programs as well as online degree and certificate programs, specialized career training, and a variety of online courses. For prospective students, eLearners® provides a powerful search engine for users to find thousands of online degree programs, as well as educational evaluation tools and financial aid resources. For colleges and universities, the eLearners.com website offers a low-cost, performance-
About EducationDynamics
EducationDynamics, a portfolio company of Halyard Capital, is the leading marketing and information services company dedicated to helping higher education institutions find, enroll and retain students. Its content-rich and highly visible education websites, including EarnMyDegree.com, eLearners.com, GradSchools.com, StudyAbroad.com, and its more than 50 special interest microsites, make EducationDynamics the premier provider of qualified prospective students for online colleges and universities. In addition, the company offers a full suite of web-delivered services proven to drive enrollment growth and reduce student attrition. For more information, visit http://www.educationdynamics.com.
