Form 1098-T: Tuition Statement is the information return that colleges and universities are required by the IRS to issue to students for their tax information.  The only students not issued a 1098-T by UND are nonresident aliens, unless requested.

The information on the 1098-T form is provided to assist each Student/Taxpayer in preparing the IRS FORM 8863, which is used to claim the American Opportunity or Lifetime Learning Credits. Once complete, the 8863 should be attached to the Student/Taxpayer's return to determine eligibility and the amount of the Education credit (if any) that he/she may be entitled to on their Individual Income Tax Return. See the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf for more information.

Every UND student eligible to receive a 1098-T will have electronic access to their form through Campus Connection – see above for detailed instructions.  If the student does not grant consent for electronic access, a paper copy will be sent prior to January 31, 2013. Students who grant consent for electronic access will always have access to their electronic 1098-T sooner than students who are receiving a mailed copy.

Box 1 (Payments received for qualified tuition and related expenses) is blank because UND reports "Amounts billed" instead. The IRS provides the option for universities to report either "Payments received" in Box 1 OR "Amounts billed" in Box 2, but not both. UND has elected to report "Amounts billed." IRS regulations prevent the University from changing our reporting method for a current or prior tax year.

While it is a good starting point, the 1098-T, as designed and regulated by the IRS, does not contain all of the information needed to claim a tax credit. Most of the information needed must come from the student's personal financial records of what the student paid during the calendar year. The student/filer should ensure that supporting documentation is also provided to the IRS for payments made to UND. Additionally, each taxpayer and his or her tax advisor must make the final determination of qualifying expenses.

Box 2 (Amounts billed for qualified tuition and related expenses) reflects the "qualified tuition and expenses" billed to your account during the tax year. "Qualified tuition and expenses," as defined by the IRS, includes tuition and related fees that are required for enrollment or attendance by the University. Effective 2012, this amount will also include any flight costs for Aviation students. Box 2 WILL NOT include expenses billed for room, board, or books.  Box 2 will be net of any waivers received by the student for the calendar year.

Box 4 (Adjustments made for a prior year) reflects any refunds of tuition and fees billed in a previous tax year that you may have received in the current tax year.

Box 5 (Scholarships or grants) reflects any scholarships or grants applied to your account during the calendar year. Effective 2012, this will also include any payments received from 3rd parties (excluding family members and loan proceeds). This will also include any remission, stipend, and/or fellowship payments.

This box does not provide you the information required to determine if any portion of these amounts are taxable. We encourage you to read IRS Publication 970, IRS Code Section 117, or consult your tax preparer to determine whether any grants, scholarships, remission, stipends, fellowships, or 3rd party payments may be taxable. For example, if ALL of the funds shown in Box 5 were used to pay only tuition, qualified fees, and books, it is possible that they can be excluded from taxable income. Scholarships are normally taxable if after tuition, qualified fees, and books, they are used to pay for housing, meals, insurance, travel and other non-qualified charges.

If there is a check mark in Box 8, it means that you were considered at least a half-time student during the tax year. At UND, "at least half-time" is considered to be 6 or more credit hours in a semester.

If there is a check mark in Box 9, it means that you were considered a graduate student for at least 1 term of the calendar year reported. This means you were enrolled in a program or programs leading to a graduate-level degree, graduate-level certificate, or other recognized graduate-level educational credential.

If you believe there is an error on your 1098-T, you can contact Student Account Services at (701)777-3911 or UND.studentaccounts@UND.edu.

Not necessarily! Only amounts billed by the University are on the 1098-T form. Whenever a student (or parent) wants to claim the tax credit for educational expenses or any other tax benefits relating to higher education – they must determine the amount of tuition actually paid – NOT BILLED. Furthermore, any related qualified expenses for the American Opportunity Tax Credit need to be determined from records kept by the taxpayer. The University does not track these type of expenses on the 1098-T.