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Tax Back on College Fees

April 6, 2020

DID YOU KNOW? – you can claim tax relief for tuition fees! You might be entitled to a tax refund if you have paid tuition fees for yourself or on behalf of someone else.

How is the relief calculated?

Tax relief is given at the standard 20% rate and is applied to the total ‘qualifying fees’, less an ‘annual disregard’.

Qualifying fees are the amount you pay for tuition fees (including the student contribution), but do not include exam fees, registration fees, administration fees or any fees covered by a grant or scholarship.

The maximum amount you can claim is €7,000 per person per course per year.

What is the ‘annual disregard’ ?

Each claim is subject to a single disregard amount each year. This amount is taken away from your total qualifying fees. You cannot receive tax relief on that portion of the fees.

If you have paid fees for more than one course or student, you only subtract the disregard amount once.

There are different disregard amounts for full-time and part-time courses:

  • Full time – €3,000
  • Part time – €1,500

If you pay for full-time courses and part-time courses in the same year, you should use the full-time course disregard amount.

Did You Know?

When claiming tax back on tuition fees, if you have paid the fees in instalments you are entitled to submit the claim in the year in which you paid the instalment or in the year that the academic year started, whichever is most beneficial to maximising your refund. Example 3 below shows how this works.

Example 1:

You pay tuition fees for a part-time course for your child in 2019 of €9,000. The qualifying fees are capped at €7,000, less the part-time disregard of €1,500. Tax relief is available on €5,500 at 20%, giving you tax back of €1,100.

Example 2:

You pay tuition fees for two full-time courses for two of your children in 2019 of €3,000 each. The qualifying fees are €6,000, less the full-time disregard of €3,000. Tax relief is available on €3,000 at 20%, giving you tax back of €600.

Example 3:

You pay tuition fees for a part-time course of €12,000. The course started in 2018, but you paid half of the fees in 2018 and half in 2019. You have the option to claim the refund for fees paid in the tax years in which they were paid or in the year in which the course started.

2018 Academic Year: Qualifying fees of €12,000 are capped at €7,000, less the part-time disregard of €1,500. Tax relief is available on €5,500, giving you a tax refund of €1,100.

Tax Year Claim: Qualifying fees of €6,000, less the part-time disregard of €1,500. Tax relief is available on €4,500 at 20%, giving you a tax refund of €900 in both 2018 and 2019.

As you can see from this example, your total refund is €1,800 if you claim for the year in which the tuition fees were paid, rather than claiming a refund of €1,100 for the academic year.

How do I claim tax back on Tuition Fees?

To claim tax back on Tuition Fees, just fill in our Full Review Form. This form will provide us with the details necessary to claim tax back on Tuition Fees, along with any additional tax credits you might be due for the last 4 years.

Alternatively, you can fill out our Quick Review Form, and contact us upon completion informing us of the tax credit(s) you are looking to claim.

If you are not entitled to tax back on Tuition Fees, but would still like us to review your taxes, just complete our 50-second Quick Review Form.