Education Expense Credit
General Rules and Requirements for Schools
Page 2 of 4 PUB-112 (R-01/09)
Contents
General Information
What are qualifi ed education expenses? ................................................................................2
What schools qualify as Illinois schools? ................................................................................2
Are Illinois schools required to provide a written receipt for education expenses? .................2
Sample Written Receipt .............................................................................................3
Offi ce Locations ........................................................................................................4
For information or Forms .........................................................................................4
General Information
What are qualifi ed education expenses?
In general, qualifi ed education expenses are the amounts paid
in excess of $250 for tuition, book fees, and lab fees at the
school where the student is enrolled during the regular school
year.
Specifi cally, qualifi ed education expenses include the amount of
tuition paid for a student who was enrolled in kindergarten
through twelfth grade.
Note: This does not include summer school enrichment
classes.
book fees paid for the rental of books that were required as
part of the student’s participation in the school’s education
program.
Note: This does not include books purchased by the student.
lab fees paid for the use of supplies, equipment, materials,
or instruments that were required as part of the student’s
participation in a lab course in the school’s education
program.
Lab courses include those courses, for which the student will
receive credit toward graduation, that provide an environment
for organized activity involving observation, experimentation, or
practice, (i.e., science, music, art, or language).
Note: Only musical instruments rented from the school (not
from a business) qualify as an education expense.
Any purchased equipment, materials, or instruments that are
substantially consumed (i.e., it essentially has no remaining
value) by the assignments and activities of the lab are
considered qualifi ed lab fees.
Any amount paid for the purchase of an item that will remain the
personal property of the student, parent, or legal guardian at the
end of the school year, is not considered a qualifi ed education
expense (e.g., payments made toward the purchase of a band
instrument or athletic equipment).
What schools qualify as Illinois
schools?
For the purpose of the education expense credit, public or
nonpublic elementary or secondary schools in Illinois that satisfy
the requirements of the truancy law in Section 26-1 of the
School Code and, if required, are in compliance with Title VI of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964 qualify as Illinois schools.
Private schools providing educational instruction in the home
that satisfy the requirements of the truancy law in Section 26-1
of the School Code also qualify as Illinois schools.
Are Illinois schools required to
provide a written receipt for education
expenses?
Illinois schools are encouraged to provide a written receipt
for education expenses paid at the school for the qualifying
student(s) during the calendar year. The school should provide
this receipt on or before January 31 of the following calendar
year.
When a school provides a written receipt, the written receipt
must be in the format prescribed by the Illinois Department of
Revenue. An example of the receipt is shown on Page 3.
The written receipt must include the
calendar year during which the education expenses were
paid,
name and address of the school,
name and address of the parent or guardian who paid,
name and Social Security number (SSN) of the student,
grade level of the student,
total* amount of education expenses paid to the school for
each qualifying student’s tuition, book fees, and lab fees
during the calendar year.
*The person who paid the education expenses will use the
total of the expenses minus $250 to calculate the allowable
credit.
Note: All information on the receipt is confi dential information
for use only as supporting documentation of the education
expense credit claimed and shall not be used for any other
purpose.
