U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

The American Opportunity 

Tax Credit 

U.S. Department of the Treasury

October 12, 2010

The President created the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) as part of the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which he signed into law in February 2009. For tax years 2009 

and 2010, the new law allows families with tuition expenses to receive a tax credit of up to $2,500 

per student, and up to $1,000 per year of this amount is refundable. If the AOTC is made 

permanent, as proposed in the President’s FY 2011 Budget, a student could receive a credit up to 

$10,000 over four years. This report explains how the AOTC works, estimates what benefits 

typical families can expect to receive compared with prior law, and shows how families have 

already benefited from the new credit.

1 
Executive Summary

The President created the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) as part of the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which he signed into law in February 2009. The AOTC replaces 

the Hope Scholarship credit for Tax Years 2009 and 2010, increasing the benefits for nearly all 

Hope credit recipients and many other students by providing a maximum benefit up to $2,500 per 

student – 100 percent of their first $2,000 in tuition and 25 percent of the next $2,000 –expanding 

the income range over which taxpayers can claim a credit, and making the credit partially 

refundable. If the AOTC is made permanent, as proposed in the President’s FY 2011 Budget, a 

student could receive a credit up to $10,000 over four years.

o The AOTC Increased Tax Incentives for Higher Education by over 90%, or $8.7 billion, in 2009. 

o 12.5 Million Students and Their Families Received a Tax Incentive for Higher Education in 

2009, an increase of 400,000 from 2008. 

o AOTC Recipients in 2009 Received an Average Tax Credit of Over $1,700, about 75% More than 

the average Hope or Lifetime Learning Credit recipient in 2008. 

o 4.5 Million Students and Families Received a Tax Refund from the AOTC in 2009 With An 

Average Value of $800, which they would not have been eligible for in 2008.

o The AOTC Reduces the Cost of College for Middle Class Families Because It:

o Is Available for Four Years of College – While The Hope Credit Is Available for Only Two 

o Makes It Possible for Students in Their Third and Fourth Year of College to Receive A Tax 

Incentive As Much As Double or Triple What They Could Receive Before 

o Provides Significant Savings Even In the First Two Years of College 

o Allows More Students to Receive the Credit and Increases its Value – by Making it Refundable, 

and Increasing the Income Range Over Which the Credit is Available

How the AOTC Made College More Affordable for Families in 2009

This report includes analysis by the Departments of Treasury and Education that estimates how 

families benefited from the new credit in 2009. The following are some key findings: 

1. The AOTC Increased Tax Incentives for Higher Education by More Than 90 Percent, or 

$8.7 billion, in 2009. 

o The amount of total higher education tax incentives – including credits and deductions – 

rose from just under $9.6 billion in 2008 to more than $18.2 billion in 2009. 

2. 12.5 Million Students and Their Families Received a Tax Incentive for Higher Education in 

2009, an increase of more than 400,000 from 2008. 

o More than two-thirds of these students – 8.3 million – received the more generous AOTC

in 2009, with a total value of $14.4 billion. 

3. AOTC Recipients in 2009 Got an Average Tax Credit of More Than $1,700, about 75 

percent more than the average Hope or Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC) recipient in 2008. 

2 
o In 2009, the average AOTC recipient received $1,736, 76 percent more than recipients of 

college tax credits received in 2008, when only the Hope credit and LLC were available.

o Even including students who still took the LLC in 2009, the average recipient of a college 

tax credit in 2009 received $1,714, 74 percent more than 2008.

4. 4.5 Million Students and Families Received a Tax Refund from the AOTC in 2009 With an 

Average Value of $800, which they would not have been eligible for in 2008. 

o Families whose AOTC exceeded their federal income tax liability collected $3.6 billion in 

refunds in 2009, which would have been unavailable through the Hope credit.

How the AOTC Reduces the Cost of College for Middle-Class Families

Compared to the existing Hope credit, the American Opportunity Tax Credit: 

1. Is Available for Four Years of College – While The Hope Credit Is Available for Only Two.

o The Hope credit is only available for the first two years of school, leaving students 

eligible for the significantly less generous Lifetime Learning Credit in their third and 

fourth years, which is equal to 20 percent of the first $10,000 in higher education expenses. 

o The AOTC is available for all four years, allowing students at four-year colleges to 

receive substantially higher benefits as juniors and seniors. 

2. Makes It Possible for Students to Receive a Tax Incentive in the Third or Fourth Year of 

College As Much As Double or Triple What They Could Receive Before

o Prior to the AOTC, a student at a four-year college with tuition of $4,000 would be eligible 

for a Lifetime Learning Credit up to $800 for their third or fourth year of college. 

o Under the AOTC, this student could receive an AOTC up to $2,500 during the third or 

fourth year – three times the amount they would have received otherwise. Even students 

with tuition up to $6,250 could see their tax benefit at least double. 

o This increased incentive is particularly important for community college students who 

might otherwise struggle to pay higher tuition after transferring to a four-year college 

3. Provides Significant Savings Even In the First Two Years of College

o Under the Hope credit, the maximum a student could receive was $1,800 per year. 

o Under the AOTC, the maximum benefit is $2,500 – providing students who took the Hope 

credit with up to $700 more even during the first two years of college. 

o The AOTC – unlike the Hope or LLC – can also be used to cover the cost of textbooks 

and other course material during all four years of college. 

4. Allows More Students to Receive the Credit and Increases its Value– by Making it 

Refundable, and Increasing the Level of the Phase-out.

o The AOTC is refundable up to 40 percent of the credit – or up to $1,000 a year – 

allowing lower-income students without federal income tax liability to receive a benefit 

they would not get under the Hope credit, which is not refundable at all.

o The AOTC phases out at a higher level – beginning at $160,000 for joint filers: While 

the Hope credit phased out between $100,000 and $120,000 for married couples filing 

jointly ($50,000 to $60,000 for single taxpayers), the AOTC phases out between $160,000 

and $180,000 ($80,000 to $90,000 for single taxpayers), providing more families with a 

larger credit. 

3 
I.  Introduction

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act or ARRA) created the 

American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) and increased the maximum Pell Grant. This new 

credit, combined with the larger Pell Grant, provides more help to families with college expenses, 

expands the number of years of postsecondary education that the credit can be used from two 

years to four years, and broadens eligibility so that more families can take advantage of the credit. 

The maximum Pell Grant increased further to $5,550 for the 2010-2011 award year due to an 

additional statutory increase unrelated to the Recovery Act. This report uses tax calculators from 

the Treasury Department and Pell Grant calculators from the Department of Education to provide 

estimates of what typical families could expect to receive under the new credit and expanded Pell 

Grants. It also uses data provided by the Internal Revenue Service on the number of families who 

received AOTC credits for Tax Year 2009 and how much, on average, they received. These 

figures are provided at both a national and state level. 

II. Description of American Opportunity Tax Credit

The AOTC was designed to replace and improve upon existing tax benefits so that more students 

and their families could receive college tuition assistance and that assistance would be larger. With 

the AOTC, families with college tuition expenses can receive a tax credit of up to $2,500 each 

year for up to four years per student, with up to $1,000 of the annual credit amount refundable. 

The AOTC replaces and expands the Hope Scholarship credit (Hope credit), providing additional 

benefits for nearly all Hope credit students,1 and many other students. 

A. Prior Law

Prior to enactment of the Recovery Act, eligible taxpayers could receive a Hope credit or a 

Lifetime Learning credit (LLC). These two credits were enacted under the Tax Reform Act of 

1997, as part of a two-pronged approach toward making college more affordable. The 1997 Hope 

credit was aimed at the more traditional student population: full-time students attending college 

for the first time. The LLC was (and remains) aimed at a more diverse student population, 

including those who may be attending college part-time, attending certificate programs, or 

returning to school mid-career. 

In 1997, a student or, in the case of a dependent student, the student’s family could claim either a 

Hope credit for 100 percent of the first $1,000 and 50 percent of the next $1,000 in qualified 

tuition and related expenses, or an LLC for 20 percent of up to $10,000 in tuition and related 

expenses annually. Thus, in 1997 the maximum Hope credit was $1,500 and the maximum LLC 

was $2,000. Because the Hope credit was indexed for inflation and the LLC was not, by 2009 the 

maximum Hope credit had increased to $1,800 (100 percent of the first $1,200 of qualified tuition 

and 50 percent of the next $1,200), but the maximum LLC remained at $2,000. 

The Hope credit was only available to students attending school at least half-time and only 

available for the first two years of study. The LLC was available for any number of years and 

 

1

 Although the AOTC replaced the Hope credit for most students, students eligible for Midwestern disaster area 

benefits in 2009 (for whom the value of the Hope credit was doubled) would have continued to claim a Hope credit.

4 
could be claimed by students attending school less than half-time. The Hope credit was calculated 

per student, and the LLC per taxpayer.2 In 2009, both credits phased out between $50,000 and 

$60,000 of adjusted gross income for unmarried taxpayers and between $100,000 and $120,000 

for married taxpayers. Neither credit was refundable. 

Because the maximum LLC was higher than the maximum Hope credit, the LLC served not only 

the part-time population and students attending school for more than two years, but also students 

attending higher-cost institutions. In 2009, many students paying tuition and related expenses 

greater than $9,000 would have been better off taking the LLC than the Hope credit. 

Through 2009, taxpayers were also eligible to claim an above-the-line deduction for up to $4,000 

of qualified tuition (tuition deduction), subject to income limitations of $80,000 ($160,000 for 

joint filers). An individual student would be eligible for only one of the three benefits in a 

particular tax year. 

B. Detailed Description of the AOTC and Comparison with Previous

Credits

The AOTC replaces the Hope credit for taxable years 2009 and 2010. Comparing the AOTC to the 

Hope credit, the AOTC: 

• Is available for four years of postsecondary education, whereas the Hope credit is 

available for two years; 

• Has a higher maximum credit amount ($2,500) than the Hope credit ($1,800); 

• Is partially refundable up to 40 percent of the credit – or $1,000 a year – whereas the 

Hope credit is not refundable; 

• Has higher income phase-out limits (between $160,000 and $180,000 for married couples 

filing joint returns) than the Hope credit (between $100,000 and $120,000 for married 

taxpayers filing joint returns); and, 

• Includes textbook costs and course materials – not covered by the Hope credit – which at 

some schools can even exceed the cost of tuition paid by students. 

The AOTC equals 100 percent of the first $2,000, plus 25 percent of the next $2,000, of qualified 

tuition and related expenses (for a maximum credit of $2,500). Under the Recovery Act, the 

definition of related expenses for the AOTC includes course materials, which is an expansion from 

the prior-law Hope credit. 

Other aspects of the Hope credit are retained under the AOTC, including the requirement that 

AOTC recipients be enrolled at least half-time. Under current law, the AOTC will expire after 

2010, at which point tax benefits for students will once again be limited to the less generous Hope 

credit and LLC. Table 1 compares the Hope credit, the LLC, the AOTC, and the Tuition 

Deduction for 2009. 

 

2

 Thus, taxpayers with more than one student could claim a Hope credit for each qualifying student but expenses 

eligible for an LLC were capped at $10,000 covering all students in the household. 

5 
Table 1

Major Tax Benefits for Education in 2009 Under Recovery Act and Prior Law

Provision

Hope Scholarship 

Credit

Lifetime Learning 

Credit 

American 

Opportunity Tax 

Credit 

Tuition 

Deduction 

Tax Benefit Per student tax credit Per taxpayer tax 

credit 

Per student tax credit Above-the-line tax 

deduction

Qualifying 

Expenses

Tuition and required 

fees1

Tuition and required

fees1

Tuition and required 

fees, books

Tuition and required 

fees

Eligible 

Individuals

Taxpayer, spouse or

dependent in 1st or

2nd year of higher

education enrolled at

least half-time in 

degree or certificate 

program

Taxpayer, spouse or

dependent enrolled in

higher education

Taxpayer, spouse or

dependent in first four

years of higher

education enrolled at

least half-time in 

degree or certificate 

program

Taxpayer, spouse or

dependent enrolled in 

higher education

Maximum 

Benefit and 

Calculation 

of Benefit

$1,800: 100% of the 

first $1,200 and 50% 

of the next $1,200

(indexed for inflation, 

non-refundable)

$2,000: 20% of the 

first $10,000 total

across all eligible

students in household

(not indexed for

inflation, nonrefundable)

$2,500: 100% of first 

$2000 and 25% of

next $2,000 (40%

refundable)

Deduction of up to 

$4,000 

Income 

Limits in 

2009

Phase-out begins at 

$50,000 ($100,000 if

joint return) and is pro

rata over next $10,000 

($20,000 if joint return) 

Phase-out begins at 

$50,000 ($100,000 if

joint return) and is pro

rata over next $10,000

($20,000 if joint return)

Phase-out begins at 

$80,000 ($160,000 if

joint return) and is pro

rata over next $10,000 

($20,000 if joint return) 

Deduction limited to 

$4,000 if AGI is less 

than $65,000 

($130,000 if joint 

return); and to $2,000 

if AGI is between 

$65,000 and $80,000 

($130,000 and $160,000 

if joint return)

1

 In 2009, only individuals eligible for Midwestern disaster area benefits should claim a Hope scholarship

credit. Additional expenses are allowed for both the Hope and the LLC for students eligible for Midwestern 

disaster area benefits.

6 
C. Pell Grants and Tax Credits

Pell Grants are need-based grants available to low-income undergraduate students.3 Pell Grants 

are the largest source of grant aid in the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) and are available for 

use at more than 5,400 institutions.4 In Fiscal Year 2009, Pell Grants averaging $3,591 were 

received by an estimated 8.1 million students.5

 

Maximum Pell Grant increased in 2009: Since entering office, President Obama has doubled the 

funding for Pell Grants, not only to provide aid for the increasing numbers of students going back 

to school, but to increase the amount of support students receive. The maximum Pell Grant for the 

2008-2009 award year was $4,731. The maximum Pell Grant increased to $5,350 for the 2009-

2010 award year largely due to a $500 increase as part of the Recovery Act. The maximum Pell 

Grant increased further to $5,550 for the 2010-2011 award year due to an additional statutory 

increase unrelated to the Recovery Act. As a result of the SAFRA Act (part of the Health Care and 

Education Reconciliation Act of 2010), starting with the 2013-2014 academic year, the maximum 

grant will also automatically increase by the Consumer Price Index rate. These increased Pell 

Grant awards will provide additional direct aid to low-income students and families in future years 

Pell Grant eligibility: In general, Pell Grants are awarded to dependent students whose parents 

have income less than $50,000 per year and to independent students whose income is less than 

$20,000 per year.6 Grant amounts are calculated using a formula that compares costs of 

attendance to the expected contribution of the student and their family to the student’s education 

(the Expected Family Contribution, or EFC) with any shortfall made up by a Pell Grant, subject to 

the maximum award amount. The cost of attendance includes tuition and fees, books, and living 

expenses. The Expected Family Contribution is calculated by the Department of Education using 

a formula that considers the financial resources of the student and the student’s family (including, 

for example, the student’s income and financial assets, the family’s income and financial assets, 

family size, the number of additional family members attending post-secondary education.) Parttime students and students attending less than a full academic year receive prorated grants.7

 

Young, low-income independent students, however, may not be eligible for Pell grants because 

their parents’ income may preclude them from qualifying for a Pell Grant even if the students file 

non-dependent tax returns.8

 

Interaction between Pell Grants and higher education tax credits: A student could receive both a 

Pell Grant and a tax credit, but only if the student’s tuition and fees exceeded the amount of the 

Pell Grant received. Pell Grants are subtracted from tuition and fees in calculating the tax credit. 

Only tuition and fees paid by the student, after subtracting grant aid, are qualifying expenses for 

 

3

 Certain post-baccalaureate students in teacher certification programs may also be eligible. 4

 Department of Education, Description of Federal Pell Grant Program, http://www2.ed.gov/programs/fpg/index.html 5

 See Appendix to the Budget of the U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2011, page 383.

6

 The income limits described here assume a very simple case where families have few other resources and very 

limited assets. The actual process for determining eligibility is complex and will affect these cut-offs. 

7

 The 2009/2010 academic year was the first year that Pell Grants were available to less than half-time students. 8

 Under Federal financial aid formulas, families of younger students (those under age 25) are generally expected to 

contribute to their children’s education. Pell Grant awards are based on this expectation and therefore may be lower 

or denied if the parents have significant income even in the case where the parents do not actually contribute to the 

child’s education. There are a number of exceptions to this rule (e.g., young students with children of their own are 

treated the same as older independent students). The rules are intended to target aid to the neediest students.

7 
the purpose of the tax credits.9

 As a result, Pell Grant recipients with relatively low levels of 

tuition and fees may not be eligible for the tax credits (if the Pell grant equals or exceeds 

qualifying tuition and related expenses) or may have the amount of their education tax credit 

limited. However, in 2009, even with the new higher maximum Pell Grant, a student’s award 

pays only 68 percent of average cost of attendance at two-year public institutions and 35 percent at 

four-year public institutions, most of the 8.1 million Pell Grant recipients stand to benefit from a 

higher education tax credit. 

D. Reasons for Enacting the AOTC  

The value of higher education is substantial and growing: Economics research has consistently 

documented a large payoff to higher education.10 All types of higher education, including both 

four-year colleges and two-year community colleges, have been found to significantly increase 

productivity and wages.11 Moreover, the payoff to higher education has increased sharply over 

the past 30 years.12 In 2009, the median college graduate earned 63 percent more than the median 

high-school graduate. College graduates were also much less likely to be unemployed.13

The increases in productivity and pay associated with post-high school education benefit not only 

the workers that attain higher education, but also society more broadly: research has shown, for 

example, that college educated workers improve the productivity of nearby non-college educated 

workers.14 

Paying for college is a pressing concern for many students and parents, and the value of the 

Hope credit did not keep up with the rising costs of education: While the benefits of a college 

education are high, so are the costs, and paying for college is a pressing concern for many students 

and parents. This has become increasingly true for many middle class families, as college tuition 

has recently risen at a much higher rate than inflation (specifically, general price inflation between 

September 1999 and September 2009 was 29 percent: during the same period, tuition and fees 

more than doubled). 

 

Although the Hope credit was indexed for overall inflation, it had not kept up with rising tuition 

and fees. When adjusted for inflation, tuition and fees rose over 50 percent at four-year public 

colleges and by a third at four-year private colleges since the Hope Scholarship credit was enacted 

 

9

 This is true for all grant aid, not just Pell grants. All federal, state and private grants must be subtracted from 

tuition and fees when calculating eligible expenses for the education credits. 

10 Card, David, “The Causal Effect of Education on Earnings,” in Orley Ashenfelter and David Card, eds., Handbook 

of Labor Economics, Vol. 3A, (1999), pp. 1801-63. 11 Kane, Thomas and Cecilia Rouse, “The Community College: Educating Students at the Margin between College 

and Work,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 13, No. 1 (Winter, 1999), pp 63-84 12 Goldin, Claudia and Lawrence Katz, “Long-Run Changes in the Wage Structure: Narrowing, Widening, 

Polarizing,” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Vol. 2, (2007), pp 135-165 13 Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009 Current Population Survey, from: http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_chart_001.htm

14 Moretti, Enrico, “Estimating the Social Return to Higher Education: Evidence from Longitudinal and Repeated 

Cross-section Data,” Journal of Econometrics, Vol. 121, No. 102, (2004).

8 
in 1997.15 By increasing the maximum tax credit by 28 percent (from $1,800 to $2,500) the new 

AOTC credit restored much of the value of the original Hope credit. 

The structure of the AOTC also provides two improvements for taxpayers eligible for educationtargeted tax benefits: 

1. Equal Benefits: Because the AOTC varies little with tuition costs, reaches its maximum 

far below average tuition rates and is available for four years, the new law confers more 

equal benefits across students for the first four years of postsecondary school, especially as 

compared to the LLC which only gives out its maximum credit to families expending over 

$10,000; and, 

2. Simplicity: Because the AOTC is always larger than the LLC, students no longer have to 

do complex calculations to see which credit they should take. If a student qualifies for the 

AOTC, then the student should take it. If not, then the student can take the LLC. 

The AOTC persists through all four years of a four-year college program, reducing the stress 

on students who may be less likely to finish their studies without consistent financial support:

Although prior law was successful in making the first two years of college more affordable, it did 

less to support retention in successive years. In 2007, full-time enrollment of 19 year olds was 42 

percent but only 57 percent of full-time bachelor’s degree students who began their studies in 

2001 had a bachelor’s degree by 2007.16 

The AOTC is partially refundable, making it available to low income families and therefore 

more likely to increase enrollments than the Hope credit: Prior tax law also offered limited 

assistance to the lowest income students, in part because the benefits were non-refundable and 

thus of little value to those with no federal income tax liability. Research has shown that low 

income students are the most sensitive to tuition prices and the most likely to increase their 

enrollments in response to tuition grants.17 The AOTC is partially refundable for up to 40 percent 

of the credit, making it more available to low income families (and others with no federal income 

tax liability) and therefore more likely to increase enrollments than the Hope credit. 

The addition of textbook costs will make a meaningful difference in college affordability.

According to the College Board, the average cost for books and supplies exceeded $1,000 per 

student at public four-year, private four-year, and public two-year colleges in 2009-10.18 A recent 

study by California’s State Auditor found that for the 2.9 million students in the California 

Community College system, textbooks are their largest single higher education expense.19

 

15 College Board, Table 4, “Trends in College Pricing 2009.” The table weights tuition increases by full-time 

equivalent enrollment.

16 National Center for Education Statistics, “Enrollment in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2007; Graduation Rates, 

2001 & 2004 Cohorts; and Financial Statistics, Fiscal Year 2007, March 2009. 

http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2009/2009155.pdf

17 See Dynarski, Susan, “Does Aid Matter? Measuring the Effect of Student Aid on College Attendance and 

Completion,” The American Economic Review, March 2003. 18 The College Board, Table 1: Average Estimated Undergraduate Budgets, 2009-10 (Enrollment Weighted). Annual 

Survey of Colleges. The Table weights estimated tuition and fee costs by full-time enrollment. 

19 California State Auditor, “Affordability of College Textbooks,” California State Auditor Report 2007-116, August 

2008. 

9 
III. Estimated Effect of Expanded Education Benefits on Typical Families

A. Overview of Analysis

Examples show a broad cross-section of families benefiting from a combination of the AOTC 

and increases in Pell grants: Table 2 shows the benefits of the education provisions in the 

Recovery Act – including the AOTC and the expanded Pell grant – for a hypothetical married 

couple with one dependent student at varying income levels. Table 3 does the same for a single 

parent family with a dependent student, while Table 4 shows what benefits could be for an 

independent student paying their own way through college. Lastly, Table 5 shows a brief analysis 

of the effects of extending AOTC benefits to the first four years of education, relative to the two 

years allowed for receipt of the Hope credit, which are substantial. While eligibility for the AOTC 

is the same for schools attending public and private colleges, gross tuition is assumed to be $7,500 

for a four-year public college and $25,000 for a four-year private college, respectively.20

Background on the analysis: The tables present tax information under 2009 law, with Pell grants 

calculated for the 2010-2011 academic year. There are additional benefits available to taxpayers 

beyond the education tax credits and the Pell Grants. Taxpayers with education expenses for a 

dependent student attending full-time may claim a dependency exemption for five extra years until 

the student is 24. Similarly, taxpayers with moderate incomes may claim the student as a 

qualifying child for five extra years for Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) purposes until the 

student is 24. In 2009, taxpayers could claim a tuition deduction, although most individuals 

eligible for the education credits would have found the credits more beneficial. Additional 

benefits, including those for work-related education or education savings, are not included here. 

Assumptions of the analysis: In the examples, all students are assumed to attend full-time and be 

in their first two years of study unless otherwise noted. Families are assumed to have only wage 

income and are assumed to have a typical level of deductible expenses.21 For purposes of 

computing the Pell Grant, it is assumed that the student is beginning his or her education this year, 

and thus received neither a Pell Grant nor an education credit the previous year. It is also assumed 

that the student and the parent have few additional assets. Pell grant amounts and income tax 

liabilities would vary if these assumptions were changed. 

Table 4, which summarizes the combined tax and grant benefits for a set of individuals paying for 

their own education, looks at an individual who earns $10,000 while in school either part-time or 

full-time. For purposes of computing the Pell Grant, it is assumed that the individual’s parents are 

married with a household income of $40,000. The Appendix presents a set of tables with more 

detail about the tax situation of each family described in the tables, as well as more detailed notes 

on the how the benefits were calculated. 

 

20 These figures are simplified for ease of calculation, but roughly in line with College Board data on published tuition 

and fees. They also do not take into account grants, scholarships, or other reductions to educational costs (other than 

the Pell Grant) that would not be contained within the eligible cost basis for the AOTC. College Board, Annual Survey 

of Colleges, October 2009. 21 For purposes of these calculations, we used the assumption that itemized deductions are equal to 18 percent of 

income. Each family is assumed to itemize deductions only if doing so reduces its Federal income taxes (i.e., if the 

itemized deductions exceed the standard deduction). 

10 
B. The Benefits of AOTC to Families with a Dependent Student   

 

Married parents with one dependent child in college: Table 2 shows the benefits of the education 

provisions in the Recovery Act for a hypothetical married couple with one dependent student. 

Education benefits are shown for families with earnings of $20,000, $40,000, $80,000 and $120,000. 

For each income level, the table shows a summary of the annual tax benefits and Pell Grants for a 

student attending an average four-year public college and four-year private college.22 The EITC 

phases out as income increases beyond a specified amount. In contrast, the value of the dependency 

exemption increases with the marginal tax rates (and thus, the incomes) of the families over the 

income range considered here, but may be constrained by limited tax liability. Since the student is 

assumed to attend full-time, the family may benefit from the EITC and dependency exemption. 

 

22 As noted above, gross tuition is assumed to be $7,500 for a four-year public college and $25,000 for a four-year 

private college, respectively.

11 
Single parents with one child in college: Table 3 shows the value of education tax benefits and 

grants for a hypothetical single parent with one dependent child with earnings of $20,000, 

$40,000, and $80,000. As above, the table shows the education benefits for students attending an 

average four-year public college and a four-year private college. Since the student is assumed to 

attend full-time, the family also may benefit from the EITC and dependency exemption.23 

 

23 When calculating total education benefits, it is assumed that the parent would still file as a head of household if the 

student did not attend college. 

12 
The simulations in tables 2 and 3 – for married and unmarried couples with a dependent student – 

demonstrate the following effects across income and family types for dependent students: 

The AOTC Delivers a Substantial Refund to Low-Income Students and their Families. 

• Tables 2 and 3 show that both married and single parent families earning $20,000 with one 

child attending a public four-year college receive a $780 refund from the AOTC that they 

would have been ineligible for without the Recovery Act being enacted. 

o This $780 increase in the AOTC represents over 10% of that student’s tuition costs; 

and, 

o When combined with the Pell Grant, this student’s higher education benefits exceed the 

tuition cost by $2,100, allowing some of their Pell Grant to be freed up for muchneeded books, supplies, and living expenses. 

• Lower- or moderate-income families with children in private four-year colleges could also 

receive a $1,000 refund from the AOTC, which they would not have received without the 

Recovery Act being enacted. 

o Families with Dependent Students Across all the Income Levels Analyzed would Receive 

Substantial Increases in Tax Incentives to Attend Four-Year Colleges. 

• All 14 family compositions and income levels in the simulation – from $20,000 to 

$120,000 – received an increase of at least $500 in tax incentives compared to the prior 

year for their child’s first or second year at a four-year college as a result of the AOTC. 

• Some families could receive up to $2,000 more than under prior law, due to the AOTC. 

13 
C. The Benefits of AOTC to an Independent Student   

Independent students, paying their own way through college, also can benefit substantially from 

the AOTC: Table 4 shows the value of education tax benefits and grants for an independent 

student who earns $10,000 and attends a typical four-year public college as full-time status and 

age are varied. Benefits are shown for full and half-time attendance, and for students under age 25 

and at least 25 years old. Age is important because for purposes of computing the Pell Grant, 

parental income is considered for childless students under 25 years old, even if the student is not 

considered a dependent for tax purposes.24 This example shows that younger students receive 

much smaller Pell Grants due to the expected parental contribution. The smaller Pell Grant for 

younger independent students is partly offset by the resulting increase in the education credits 

from the AOTC. In all cases, the overall benefits available to independent students under the 

Recovery Act are significantly larger than those under prior law. 

 

Table 4

Summary of Tax and Grant Benefits 

2009 Law and without Recovery Act (ARRA) Education Provisions1

Independent Student with $10,000 Income and Tuition Expenses for Self

25 or Older Under 25 

ARRA No ARRA ARRA No ARRA

Full-Time Student (Tuition $7,500)

Total Benefits for Education 6,005 4,665 ## 1,620 65

Total Tax-Based Education Benefits 905 65 ## 1,065 65

Federal Pell Grant 5,100 4,600 ## 555 0

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 840 ## 1,000

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 1,340 ## 1,555

Part-Time Student (Tuition $3,750)

Total Benefits for Education 3,095 2,365 1,040 65

Total Tax-Based Benefits for Education 545 65 1,040 65

Federal Pell Grant 2,550 2,300 0 0

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 480 ## 975

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 730 ## 975

1

 A detailed analysis of each case, along with a description of all assumptions is presented in the Appendix. It is 

assumed that the student's parents are a married couple earning $40,000 who do not pay the education 

expenses of their child or claim the child as a dependent on their tax return.

24 Procedures are in place for young students to appeal this classification. Age also affects eligibility for the EITC for 

taxpayers without children; the EITC in this case is not affected by student status.

14 
Table 4 shows that: 

o Across both full- and part-time independent students earning $10,000, the AOTC’s refund 

led to a large increase in their higher education tax incentives due to the passage of the 

Recovery Act: 

• As seen in the table above, full-time students in the simulation example could take home 

an additional $840 to $1,000 in higher education credits from the AOTC and part-time 

students received an additional $480 or $975 due to the AOTC. 

o Full- and part-time students paying their way through college can get tax incentives through 

the AOTC and received about a $1,000 increase in benefits due to passage of the Recovery 

Act: 

• For independent students under 25, parental income in this simulation makes them 

ineligible for a Pell Grant. These students would only have received $65 total for their 

education benefits under prior law – including credits, deductions, and the Pell – because 

the Hope and LLC were not refundable. 

• However, as the simulation shows, the AOTC would increase their tax incentives by $975 

if they are part-time and $1,000 if they are full-time, resulting in 16 times the tax 

incentives for this student due to passage of the Recovery Act. 

15 
D. The Substantial Impact of a Reliable Four Year AOTC

Added benefits of the AOTC in the third and fourth years: Table 5 compares the benefits of the 

Recovery Act’s education provisions for a hypothetical married couple with a dependent student 

in the third and fourth years of study to those whose daughter or son is in the first two years of 

study. The family is otherwise identical to the family described in Table 2. Results are presented 

for students attending a four-year public college, but the results are similar for other households 

and tuition levels. 

Table 5

Summary of Tax and Grant Benefits for Students in Different Years of Study

2009 Law and without Recovery Act (ARRA) Education Provisions1

Married Taxpayer with Education Expenses for One Dependent Child Attending Full-Time

4-Year Public College

No ARRA

ARRA Year 1 & 2 Year 3 & 4

Household Income = $20,000

Total Benefits for Education 9,503 8,223 8,223

Total Tax-Based Education Benefits 3,953 3,173 3,173

Federal Pell Grant 5,550 5,050 5,050

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 780 780 780

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 1,280 1,280 1,280

Household Income = $40,000

Total Benefits for Education 5,621 4,421 3,721

Total Tax-Based Benefits for Education 3,121 2,421 1,721

Federal Pell Grant 2,500 2,000 2,000

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 700 1,400

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 1,200 1,900

Household Income = $80,000

Total Benefits for Education 3,048 2,348 2,048

Total Tax-Based Benefits for Education 3,048 2,348 2,048

Federal Pell Grant 0 0

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 700 1,000

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 700 1,000

Household Income = $120,000

0

Total Benefits for Education 3,413 1,913 1,913

Total Tax-Based Benefits for Education 3,413 1,913 1,913

Federal Pell Grant 0 0

Value of Tax-Based Education Benefits in ARRA 1,500 1,500

Value of Tax and Pell Grant Benefits from ARRA 1,500 1,500

1

 A detailed analysis of each case, along with a description of all assumptions is presented in the Appendix. Tax 

benefits for education include education credits, tuition deduction, EITC and the additional dependency exemption.

0

16 
Underpinning the results in the Table 5 for $40,000 and $80,000 income households, is that 

some AOTC recipients in their third or fourth years of school could see an American 

Opportunity Tax Credit as much as two to three times as large as the Lifetime Learning Credit 

they would have otherwise received:

o As Table 5 shows, a family earning $40,000 with a student at the average public university 

could receive $1,400 more from the AOTC in their dependent student’s junior and senior years 

than they would have under prior law – as they could be eligible to receive $2,500 under the 

AOTC, compared to $1,100 under the Lifetime Learning Credit. 

o Over the course of a four-year education, this family could receive $4,200 more in tax credits 

to help get through college because of the AOTC than they could have received under prior 

law. 

o In certain cases – for example, at a college with tuition of $4,000 – a maximum AOTC benefit 

of $2,500 could be over three times as large as the maximum Lifetime Learning Credit (in this 

case, $800) during the third or fourth year of college. 

Benefits to community college transfer students: By providing a maximum credit of $2,500 and 

eligibility to more students, the AOTC provides the same benefits to community college students 

during their first two years of college as students at four year colleges. In addition, community 

college students who transfer into a four-year program to complete a bachelor’s degree receive the 

same strengthened tax credits for their junior and senior years as students who began their studies 

at a four-year college. This is especially valuable for students who choose community colleges as 

a more affordable option for their first two years of college and who might otherwise struggle to 

pay higher tuition if they pursue further education after receiving an associate’s degree. 

17 
IV. Tax Data on Take­Up of AOTC in 2009

Complete data for Tax Year 2009, the first year of the AOTC, are not yet available; however, an 

overview of the AOTC’s usage can be obtained from the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) 

individual income tax processing data through June 2010.25

A. Take­up of the AOTC

8.3 Million Returns Have Claimed the AOTC for 2009, and the Value of the Refund is 

Substantial: IRS processing data through June 2010 show that 8.3 million returns claimed an 

AOTC for Tax Year 2009. These taxpayers claimed $14.4 billion in AOTCs, or an average of 

over $1,700 per return. For more than 4.5 million returns, the AOTC generated a tax refund 

because the value of the AOTC exceeded the tax liability otherwise due. These returns received 

$3.6 billion in refunds.26 Table 6 shows these totals and the distribution of claims by adjusted 

gross income categories. The distributions of the number of returns with and dollars amounts of 

AOTC are heavier at the higher end of the AGI distribution than is the distribution of all returns 

processed. Dividing the distribution of total returns into approximate thirds gives AGI breakpoints of $20,000 and $50,000. Approximately 27 percent of AOTC claimants have AGI below 

$20,000 while 41 percent have AGI above $50,000. The average credit amount tends to rise with 

AGI class and then drop off for those with AGI over $100,000 as the credit gets phased out. 

 

Table 6

Adjusted Gross Income Thousands Percent Thousands Percent

Percent of 

Returns 

Processed Millions Percent

Average in 

Dollars

$0 to $10,000 21,246 16% 897 11% 4% 719 5% 802

$10,000 to $20,000 22,427 17% 1,341 16% 6% 1,495 10% 1,115

$20,000 to $30,000 17,724 14% 1,079 13% 6% 1,710 12% 1,585

$30,000 to $50,000 23,643 18% 1,491 18% 6% 2,921 20% 1,959

$50,000 to $75,000 17,563 13% 1,257 15% 7% 2,715 19% 2,160

$75,000 to $100,000 10,625 8% 905 11% 9% 2,137 15% 2,362

$100,000 to $150,000 9,189 7% 1,004 12% 11% 2,230 15% 2,221

$150,000 to $200,000 3,023 2% 273 3% 9% 455 3% 1,663

Over $200,000 2,981 2% 0 0% 0% 0 0% 0

Total 130,263 8,321 6% 14,449 1,736

Addendum: Returns with Outlay and Outlay Dollars 4,581 55% 3,634 25% 793

Source: IRS processing data through June 2010.

Notes: Excludes US Territories.

Taxpayers with negative AGI are not shown, but are included in the totals.

American Opportunity Tax Credit - US Totals - Tax Year 2009

Returns Processed Returns with AOTC Dollars of AOTC

25 The totals in this report are based on a partial year of processing data (through June 2010). However, the totals are 

unlikely to change substantially as additional returns for Tax Year 2009 are processed. Note that by June 2009 the 

IRS had processed 93 percent of all Tax Year 2008 individual income tax returns, and 97 percent of returns that 

claimed an education credit. By June 2010, the IRS had processed 130 million returns. Note also that these data have 

been processed into the IRS’s computer systems and checked for simple math errors but have not gone through the 

IRS’ more rigorous editing and data cleaning procedures

26 The addendum in Table 6 showing returns with and dollars of outlays is preliminary and subject to change.

18 
Table 7 compares the number of returns with, and dollar amounts of, tuition deductions and 

education tax credits in Tax Year 2009 to Tax Year 2008. Taxpayers in 2008 and 2009 were 

eligible for an above-the-line deduction for tuition expenses, the Hope credit and the LLC. In 

2009 taxpayers would also have been eligible for the AOTC. Although taxpayers cannot claim 

more than one type of education tax benefit for any one student in a given tax year, taxpayers with 

tuition expenses for more than one student may utilize different tax benefits for different students. 

Data for Tax Year 2008: Data for 2008 were drawn from the IRS Statistics of Income Division 

(SOI) Individual Income Tax Sample file. In that year, 4.6 million returns claimed a tuition 

deduction and 7.8 million returns claimed a Hope credit, an LLC, or both. Approximately 

250,000 returns claimed the tuition deduction and at least one of the two education credits. Thus 

12.1 million returns claimed at least one of the three education tax benefits for Tax Year 2008. 

The tuition deduction totaled $11 billion, with an average deduction of $2,404. The tax value of 

the tuition deduction depends on the claimant’s marginal tax rate. Overall, the tax value of the 

tuition deduction was approximately $1.9 billion in Tax Year 2008, with an average of value of 

$423. The education credits totaled $7.6 billion, with an average credit of $986. In sum, these tax 

incentives for education were worth about $9.6 billion to taxpayers in Tax Year 2008. 

19 
Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change

Tuition Deduction

Returns (Thousands) 4,577 2,325 -2,252

Dollars of Deductions (Millions) 11,002 5,208 -5,794

Average Deduction (Dollars) 2,404 2,240 -164

Tax Value of Deductions (Millions) 1,937 843 -1,093

Average Tax Value (Dollars) 423 363 -60

Education Credits

Hope/Lifetime Learning Credits

Returns (Thousands) 7,741 1,826 -5,915

Dollars (Millions) 7,633 2,942 -4,690

Average (Dollars) 986 1,611 625

American Opportunity Tax Credit

Returns (Thousands) NA 8,321 8,321

Dollars (Millions) NA 14,449 14,449

Average (Dollars) NA 1,736 1,736

Total Education Credits

Returns (Thousands) 7,741 10,147 2,406

Dollars (Millions) 7,633 17,392 9,759

Average (Dollars) 986 1,714 728

Total Education Tax Incentives

Returns (Thousands)

1 12,068 12,472 405

Total Tax Value (Millions) 9,569 18,235 8,666

Sources:

Tax Year 2008: Statistics of Income individual income tax sample.

Tax Year 2009: IRS processing data through June 2010, excluding US Territories.

Notes:

NA = Not Available.

1

 For Tax Year 2008, total is adjusted for 250,000 returns that claimed the tutition

deduction and at least one of the two education credits. For Tax Year 2009,

the total assumes no overlap among the tuition deduction, the Hope/Lifetime

Learning credits, and the American Opportunity Tax credit.

Table 7

Tuition Deduction and Education Credits - Tax Years 2008 and 2009

20 
B. Value of the AOTC in 2009

The total value of tax incentives for education in 2009 rose to $18.4 billion, an increase of $8.7 

billion, which is about 90% above the 2008 total. It is likely that these amounts will increase 

modestly as the remaining returns for Tax Year 2009 are received and processed by the IRS. 

The data for Tax Year 2009 show a decrease in the number of returns and dollar amounts of 

tuition deduction and Hope and Lifetime Learning credits, because taxpayers switched to the 

AOTC. Approximately 2.3 million returns claimed the tuition deduction while the total amount 

deducted fell to $5.2 billion. The total tax value of the tuition deduction fell to approximately 

$840 million, while the average tax value fell by $60 to $363. The Hope credit and LLC fell to 

$2.9 billion dollars, while the number of returns claiming those credits fell to 1.8 million.27 Much 

of the decline in deductions and credit was transferred to claims for the AOTC. As shown in 

Table 6, 8.3 million returns claimed $14.4 billion in AOTC. As a result of the AOTC, students and 

their families claimed 127% more in higher education tax credits in 2009 than in 2008. The Tax 

Year 2009 IRS processing data do not have sufficient detail to determine the overlap among the 

four education benefits for that tax year. If, however, that overlap is negligible, then 12.5 million 

returns claimed one of the four education tax benefits in TY 2009. This would be an increase of 

about 400,000 returns from Tax Year 2008. 

AOTC increased the number of beneficiaries across most income levels, but yielded greater 

increases in participation at the low and high ends: Table 8 shows the distribution of return 

counts, dollars of claim, and average claim for the tuition deduction and the combined education 

credits in Tax Years 2008 and 2009. For Tax Year 2008, the columns showing education credits 

include the Hope and Lifetime Learning credits. For Tax Year 2009, the AOTC is also included. 

The table shows that the number of taxpayers claiming a tuition deduction fell in every AGI 

category over the two years, while the number of taxpayers claiming an education credit rose in 

almost every AGI category. The increases in returns with an education credit at the low and high 

ends of the AGI distribution are larger than the decreases in returns with a tuition deduction. The 

result at the lower end of the AGI distribution may be due to the refundable nature of the AOTC, 

which enhances the ability of taxpayers with lower incomes to claim an education credit. Such 

returns may not have had enough income tax liability to claim a (non-refundable) Hope credit or 

LLC. 

Two AGI categories show a decline in the number of returns claiming an education credit. Recall 

that the processing of Tax Year 2009 returns is not complete. The return counts for all groups can 

be expected to rise with further processing, possibly eliminating the declines for both groups 

currently showing a decline. Moreover, fewer returns overall were processed through June 2010 

than were processed through June 2009. This overall decline may be attributable to variation in 

the processing calendar, but could also reflect an overall decline in tax returns filed from Tax Year 

2008 to 2009. 

 

27 In Tax Year 2009, any student eligible for the Hope credit is also eligible for the AOTC. While the AOTC is 

generally larger than the Hope Credit, the latter credit may be larger for relatively small number of students attending 

school in the Midwestern disaster area. The expense breakpoints for the Hope credit are doubled and the definition of 

eligible expenses is expanded for those students. 

21 
The total amount of higher education tax credits received was higher across all income levels:

The second section of the table shows the increased generosity of the education credits 

(attributable to the AOTC) in Tax Year 2009 over Tax Year 2008. All AGI categories received 

greater tax benefits in 2009 than they did in 2008. The tax value of the tuition deductions in each 

AGI category fell between the two tax years, however, the increase in education credit claimed 

exceeded those declines in every AGI category. The bottom section of the table shows the 

average tax value of the deduction, the average credit, and the changes in those values from Tax 

Year 2008 to Tax Year 2009 for each AGI class. All AGI categories show an increase in average 

education credit from Tax Year 2008 to 2009, and these increases more than offset the decreases 

in the tax value of the tuition deduction. 

Adjusted Gross Income Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change

$0 to $10,000 710 437 -273 50 910 860

$10,000 to $20,000 400 220 -180 1,096 1,592 495

$20,000 to $30,000 270 167 -103 1,298 1,342 44

$30,000 to $50,000 465 263 -201 2,192 1,915 -277

$50,000 to $75,000 643 378 -265 1,500 1,602 103

$75,000 to $100,000 361 158 -203 1,305 1,170 -135

$100,000 to $150,000 1,435 550 -885 300 1,218 918

$150,000 to $200,000 144 53 -91 0 326 326

All 4,577 2,325 -2,252 7,741 10,147 2,406

Adjusted Gross Income Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change

$0 to $10,000 114 69 -45 3 721 718

$10,000 to $20,000 172 85 -87 517 1,673 1,156

$20,000 to $30,000 143 84 -59 1,070 2,055 984

$30,000 to $50,000 255 135 -120 2,271 3,598 1,327

$50,000 to $75,000 236 125 -111 1,759 3,356 1,597

$75,000 to $100,000 132 53 -79 1,754 2,659 905

$100,000 to $150,000 826 267 -560 258 2,713 2,455

$150,000 to $200,000 43 14 -29 0 550 550

All 1,937 843 -1,093 7,633 17,392 9,759

Adjusted Gross Income Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change Tax Year 2008 Tax Year 2009 Change

$0 to $10,000 161 158 -3 58 792 734

$10,000 to $20,000 431 389 -42 471 1,051 580

$20,000 to $30,000 531 505 -25 825 1,531 707

$30,000 to $50,000 549 514 -34 1,036 1,879 843

$50,000 to $75,000 368 331 -37 1,173 2,095 922

$75,000 to $100,000 367 337 -30 1,344 2,273 928

$100,000 to $150,000 576 485 -91 858 2,228 1,370

$150,000 to $200,000 302 271 -30 0 1,689 1,689

All 423 363 -60 986 1,714 728

Sources:

Tax Year 2008: Statistics of Income individual income tax sample.

Tax Year 2009: IRS processing data through June 2010, excluding US Territories.

Note: Taxpayers with negative AGI are not shown, but are included in the totals.

Tax Value of Tuition Deductions Education Credits

Dollars of Tax Incentives (Millions)

Tax Value of Tuition Deductions Education Credits

Average Tax Incentive (Dollars)

Table 8

Distributions of Education Deductions and Credits by Adjusted Gross Income - Tax Years 2008 and 2009

Return Counts (Thousands)

Tuition Deductions Education Credits

22 
C. State­by­State Analysis of AOTC

Distribution of AOTC by state: Table 9 shows state-level estimates of the number of tax returns 

potentially eligible for any of the tax incentives for education (calculated as the number of returns 

with postsecondary students), the number of tax returns with AOTC, the dollar amount of AOTC, 

and average credit claimed. The table also shows the number of returns with AOTC as a 

percentage of the potentially eligible returns. This percentage is an estimate of the “take-up rate” 

of the AOTC, but only as a function of returns potentially eligible. It does not restrict the pool of 

returns to those actually eligible for the credit because the data necessary to determine actual 

eligibility are not yet available. 

The Tax Year 2007 SOI individual income tax sample was used to determine the count of tax 

returns filed from each state. The sample was matched to Tax Year 2007 1098T information 

returns to determine the count of returns in each state that received at least one information return. 

This second count is an estimate of the number of returns potentially eligible for a tax incentive 

for education.28 The share of returns potentially eligible for the AOTC is simply the ratio of this 

second count to the number of returns from the state. To estimate the Tax Year 2009 count of 

each state’s potentially eligible returns, the number of Tax Year 2009 returns processed for each 

state was multiplied by its Tax Year 2007 share. This estimation strategy assumes that the ratio of 

potentially eligible returns to total returns for any given state did not vary significantly between 

Tax Year 2007 and Tax Year 2009. 

The take-up rates and average credits vary by state: The number of returns claiming the AOTC 

and amount of credit claimed varied from 11,000 returns and $19 million dollars in Wyoming to 1 

million returns and $1.5 billion dollars in California. The highest average credit amount was 

claimed in New Hampshire ($2,155). For the entire United States, 37.8 percent of potentially 

eligible returns claimed the AOTC. Florida had the highest take-up rate, at 57.8 percent of 

potentially eligible returns. These take-up rates will not equal 100 percent because (1) some 

students with tuition expenses do not attend at least half-time; (2) some students with tuition 

expenses receive Pell Grants or other financial aid which may completely offset the qualified 

tuition expenses used to compute the AOTC; (3) some taxpayers may have had incomes too high 

to claim the AOTC; and (4) some taxpayers may have been eligible for the AOTC, but simply not 

claimed it. 

 

28 The Tax Year 2007 sample was used for this calculation because the Form 1098T returns are not yet available. 

1098T information returns are issued by postsecondary institutions to individuals that enrolled during the calendar 

year. If at least one 1098T matches to a tax return, that return is assumed to have at least one student potentially 

eligible for a tax incentive for education.

23 
State Thousands Thousands Take-up Rate Total in Millions Average in Dollars

Alabama 283 138 48.7% 232 1,685

Alaska 66 17 25.5% 30 1,788

Arizona 418 145 34.8% 224 1,539

Arkansas 182 58 31.7% 91 1,572

California 2,598 1,012 38.9% 1,461 1,444

Colorado 398 133 33.3% 247 1,861

Connecticut 272 94 34.6% 192 2,039

District of Columbia 40 14 35.3% 25 1,735

Delaware 46 22 47.5% 41 1,885

Florida 1,071 619 57.8% 951 1,538

Georgia 588 289 49.1% 469 1,624

Hawaii 104 34 32.5% 61 1,792

Idaho 120 39 32.6% 64 1,630

Illinois 989 382 38.6% 711 1,859

Indiana 478 154 32.2% 285 1,855

Iowa 227 70 30.8% 130 1,849

Kansas 260 74 28.5% 131 1,768

Kentucky 273 96 35.3% 170 1,769

Louisiana 271 108 39.8% 171 1,584

Maine 88 31 35.3% 62 1,994

Maryland 479 170 35.5% 318 1,874

Massachusetts 552 175 31.7% 358 2,048

Michigan 859 319 37.1% 583 1,830

Minnesota 489 166 34.0% 333 2,006

Montana 59 22 37.7% 39 1,744

Mississippi 151 77 50.6% 116 1,518

Missouri 457 142 31.1% 249 1,754

North Carolina 687 222 32.4% 361 1,622

North Dakota 74 20 27.4% 39 1,927

Nebraska 170 44 25.8% 76 1,738

Nevada 159 72 45.3% 106 1,480

New Hampshire 110 34 31.1% 74 2,155

New Jersey 701 281 40.1% 556 1,981

New Mexico 168 41 24.8% 57 1,374

New York 1,360 584 43.0% 1,089 1,863

Ohio 894 313 35.0% 600 1,918

Oklahoma 250 77 30.7% 123 1,596

Oregon 260 86 33.2% 147 1,711

Pennsylvania 967 335 34.7% 690 2,059

Rhode Island 80 29 35.7% 56 1,945

South Carolina 305 106 34.8% 180 1,692

South Dakota 69 23 32.9% 44 1,954

Tennessee 392 145 37.0% 245 1,690

Texas 1,583 671 42.4% 1,104 1,645

Utah 213 88 41.0% 145 1,656

Vermont 55 13 24.0% 28 2,138

Virginia 580 205 35.4% 377 1,837

Washington 451 150 33.3% 265 1,760

Wisconsin 492 141 28.7% 274 1,935

West Virginia 118 29 24.9% 51 1,730

Wyoming 37 11 31.0% 19 1,615

Total 21,991 8,321 37.8% 14,449 1,736

Sources:

AOTC counts and dollars: IRS processing data through June 2010.

Estimated eligible returns: SOI sample data and information returns for Tax Year 2007.

Notes:

Excludes US Territories.

1

 Eligible returns are estimated from counts of Tax Year 2007 individual income tax returns that match to a 1098T information return.

return. The total count of Tax Year 2007 matching returns for each state is scaled up or down to Tax Year 2009 using the ratio of Tax

Year 2009 returns processed to Tax Year 2007 returns processed. For any state: TY2009 AOTC Eligible Returns = 

(TY 2007 Returns with matching 1098T*Tax Year 2009 Returns Processed)/Tax Year 2007 Returns

Table 9

American Opportunity Tax Credit - Distribution by State - Tax Year 2009

Estimated Eligible 

Returns1 Returns with AOTC Dollars of AOTC

24 
VI. Appendix

Detailed Tables on Higher Education Incentives by Family Composition and Income: This 

appendix presents a set of seven tables with explanations about the tax situation of each family 

described in Section III with a focus on education benefits and the effects of the Recovery Act. 

Tables A1-A4 present the tax and grant benefits for a hypothetical married couple with earnings of 

$20,000, $40,000, $80,000 and $120,000 with a dependent child attending college. Tables A5-A7 

present the tax and grant benefits for a hypothetical single parent earning $20,000, $40,000, and 

$80,000 with a dependent child attending college. In the examples, all students are assumed to 

attend full-time. Families are assumed to have only wage income and are assumed to have a 

typical level of deductible expenses.29 For purposes of computing the Pell Grant, it is assumed 

that the student is beginning his or her education this year, and thus received neither a Pell Grant 

nor an education credit the previous year. The family is assumed to have earned the same income 

in 2008 and 2009 (adjusted for inflation). It is also assumed that the student and the parent have 

few additional assets. Pell Grant amounts and income tax liabilities would vary if these 

assumptions were changed. 

 

29 These calculations use the assumption that itemized deductions are equal to 18 percent of income. Each family is 

assumed to itemize deductions only if doing so reduces its Federal income taxes (i.e., if the itemized deductions 

exceed the standard deduction). 

25 
A. Additional Explanation of AOTC Benefits to Married Couples with a

Dependent Student

Following are some more detailed explanations of the analysis calculating the benefits of the 

AOTC to married families with a dependent student, detailed in Table 2 in the report: 

Married couple with $20,000 in income and one child in college: Table A1 shows that a married 

couple with earnings of $20,000 with one child attending a public four-year institution of average 

cost would receive an additional annual benefit through the Internal Revenue Code (Tax Code) of 

$780 (for a total increase of $1,280 including the increase in Pell Grants). 

This increased benefit is due to the refundable portion of the AOTC. The total tax-based 

education benefit for this family would be $3,953 per year. At the highest levels of tuition, this 

family would see an increase in annual tax benefits of $1,000, all refundable (for a total increase 

of $1,500 per year, including the increase in Pell Grants). Because this family has no federal 

income tax liability, the value of the dependency exemption is negligible. 

Married couple with $40,000 in income and one child in college: An otherwise similar couple 

with earnings of $40,000 per year (Table A2) would receive an additional annual benefit through 

the Tax Code of $700 if the student attended a public four-year college of average cost (for a total 

increase of $1,200 per year including the increase in Pell Grants). The total tax-based education 

benefit for this family would be $3,121 per year. 

Married couple with $80,000 in income and one child in college: If the couple earned $80,000 

per year (Table A3), the family would receive between an additional $325 and $700 per year 

compared with prior law (for a total annual education-based tax benefit between $2,673 and 

$3,048, depending on tuition). If the student attended a four-year public school, the family goes 

from a maximum Hope credit of $1,800 under prior law to a maximum annual AOTC of $2,500 

under the Recovery Act, an increase of $700 per year. If the student attended a four-year private 

school (with a relatively large tuition payment), the family goes from a maximum LLC of $2,000 

under prior law to a maximum annual AOTC of $2,500, an increase of $500 per year. This family 

would not be eligible for the EITC or a Pell Grant due to their income level. 

Married couple with $120,000 in income and one child in college: The Recovery Act would give 

a married couple with earnings of $120,000 an additional annual tax benefit of $1,500. This 

family would have switched from the above-the-line tuition deduction to the more valuable AOTC 

available under the Recovery Act, as can be seen in Table A4. 

26 
27 
28 
29 
30 
B. Additional Explanation of AOTC Benefits to Single Parent Families with

a Dependent Student

Following are some more detailed explanations of the analysis calculating the benefits of the 

AOTC to single parent families with a dependent student, detailed in Table 3 in the report: 

Single parents with one child in college: Table 3 shows the value of education tax benefits and 

grants for a hypothetical single parent with one dependent child with earnings of $20,000, 

$40,000, and $80,000. As above, the table shows the education benefits for students attending an 

average four-year public college, and a four-year private college. Since the student is assumed to 

attend full-time the family also may benefit from the EITC and dependency exemption.30 

Single parent household with $20,000 in income and one child in college: A single parent with 

earnings of $20,000 and one child attending college would receive very similar additional benefits 

to a married couple with the same earnings. In all cases, the annual education benefits under the 

Recovery Act are larger than under prior law. 

Single parent household with $40,000 in income and one child in college: A similar singleparent family with earnings of $40,000 per year would receive an additional annual tax benefit 

from the Recovery Act of $500 to $700 if the student attends a four-year college. 

Single parent household with $80,000 in income and one child in college: If the family earned 

$80,000 per year, the family would receive an additional annual benefit of between $1,625 and 

$2,000 (for a total education-based tax benefit of between $3,038 and $3,413 per year). The 

additional benefit compared to prior law is due to the higher income limits for eligibility for the 

AOTC. Under prior law, a single parent earning over $80,000 would not have been eligible for a 

Hope credit or LLC and therefore would have taken the less valuable tuition deduction. Under the 

Recovery Act, single parent families with AGI up to $80,000 qualify for the maximum AOTC. 

At this income, the family would not be eligible for the EITC or a Pell Grant. 

 

30 When calculating total education benefits, it is assumed that the parent would still file as a head of household if the 

student did not attend college. 

31 
32 
33 
34 
35 

 

C. Additional Explanation of AOTC Benefits to an Independent Student

Following are some more detailed explanations of the analysis calculating the benefits of the 

AOTC to an independent student with $10,000 of income, detailed in Table 4 in the report: 

Independent student earning $10,000 in income: Table 4 shows the value of education tax 

benefits and grants for an independent student who earns $10,000 and attends a typical four-year 

public college as full-time status and age are varied. Benefits are shown for full and half-time 

attendance, and for students under age 25 and at least 25 years old. Age is important because for 

purposes of computing the Pell Grant, parental income is considered for childless students under 

25 years old, even if the student is not considered a dependent for tax purposes.31 This example 

shows that younger students receive much smaller Pell Grants due to the expected parental 

contribution. The smaller Pell Grant for younger independent students is partly offset by the 

resulting increase in the education credits. In all cases, the overall benefits available to 

independent students under the Recovery Act are significantly larger than those under prior law. 

Independent full-time student earning $10,000 in income: A full-time student would receive an 

additional annual tax benefit from the Recovery Act of between $840 and $1,000 (total annual 

education benefits would be between $1,340 and $1,550 if Pell grants are included). All the 

additional benefit is due to the AOTC being refundable. If the individual attended half-time, the 

annual education tax benefit from the Recovery Act would be between $480 and $920 (total 

annual education benefits would be between $730 and $1,475 if Pell grants are included). 

31 Procedures are in place for young students to appeal this classification. Age also affects eligibility for the EITC for 

taxpayers without children; the EITC in this case is not affected by student status.