Who may take the K-12 Education Expense Credit?

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You may take the Educational Expense Credit if you are an Illinois resident, are the parent or legal guardian of a qualifying child, and pay qualifying education expenses to a qualifying school in which your child is enrolled. A qualifying school is a public or private educational facility (elementary, middle, junior high, and high schools), or home school, in Illinois that meets the requirements of Section 26-1 of the School Code.

A qualifying child is a student who, during the tax year, must have been an Illinois resident, under age of 21 at the close of the school year, and a full-time student enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade at a qualifying school.

Qualifying education expenses include tuition, book fees, and lab fees.

Note: For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2017, the credit is not allowed if a taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income (AGI) exceeds $500,000 for returns with a federal filing status of married filing jointly, or $250,000 for all other returns.

Note: To claim the credit, the child must be a dependent on the tax return and the parent or legal guardian of the eligible student must have paid qualifying educational expenses in excess of $250 to a public or nonpublic school in Illinois. However, if your child's other parent or legal guardian files a separate return and claims the K-12 education expense credit, you may not both claim a credit for the same expenses and the total amount of credit claimed between both parents or guardians may not exceed $750.

For more information, please refer to Publication 112, Education Expense Credit, Publication 119, Education Expense Credit General Rules and Requirements for Home Schools, and Publication 132, Education Expense Credit General Rules and Requirements for Parents and Guardians.

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