What is an Eligible Educational Institution?

 

An eligible educational institution is a school offering higher education beyond high school. It is any college, university, trade school, or other post-secondary educational institution eligible to participate in a student aid program run by the U.S. Department of Education.

This includes most accredited public, nonprofit and privately-owned–for-profit postsecondary institutions.

If you aren't sure if your school is an eligible educational institution:

Return to Education Credits home page

Education Benefit Resources

Information for Schools, Community and Social Organizations on our Refundable Credits Toolkit 

Tax Preparer Due Diligence Information on our Tax Preparer Toolkit

Watch out for these common errors made when claiming education credits

  • Students listed as a dependent or spouse on another tax return
  • Students who don’t have a Form 1098-T showing they attended an eligible educational institution
  • Students claimed for whom qualified education expenses were not paid
  • Claiming the credit for a student not attending a college or other higher education

Find more answers to the questions you ask about the education credits

See Education Credits: Questions and Answers

More education benefit resources

Technical Forms and Publications

Education Credit Marketing Resources

Tax Tips