Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 701 - Revenue Department › Title IV - Individual Income Tax › Chapter 304 - Adjustments to Computed Tax and Tax Credits › Rule 701-304.4 - Tuition and Textbook Credit for Expenses Incurred for Dependents Attending Grades Kindergarten Through 12 in Iowa

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
Taxpayers who pay tuition and textbook expenses of dependents
				  who attend grades kindergarten through 12 in Iowa may receive a tax credit of
				  25 percent of up to $2,000 ($1,000 for tax years beginning prior to January 1,
				  2021) of qualifying expenses for each dependent who receives private
				  instruction, as defined in Iowa Code section
				  422.12(1)
"c,"
or attends an elementary or secondary school located in
				  Iowa. A taxpayer whose dependent receives private instruction is only eligible
				  for the tuition and textbook credit for tax years beginning on or after January
				  1, 2021.
For a taxpayer whose dependent attends an elementary or
				  secondary school, in order for the taxpayer to qualify for the tuition and
				  textbook credit, the elementary school or secondary school that the dependent
				  is attending must meet the standards for accreditation of public and nonpublic
				  schools in Iowa provided in Iowa Code section
				  256.11. In addition, the school
				  the dependent is attending must not be operated for profit and must adhere to
				  the provisions of the United States Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the
				  provisions of Iowa Code chapter 216, which is known as the Iowa civil rights
				  Act of 1965.
(1)
Tuition.
For purposes of the tuition and textbook tax credit,
				"tuition" means any charge for the expense of personnel, buildings, equipment,
				and materials other than textbooks, and other expenses which relate to the
				teaching of only those subjects that are legally and commonly taught in public
				elementary or secondary schools in Iowa. "Tuition" includes charges by a
				qualified school for summer school classes or for instruction of a child who is
				physically unable to attend classes at the site of the elementary or secondary
				school. Expenses paid by a taxpayer, including a taxpayer whose dependent
				receives private instruction, for equipment and materials other than textbooks
				must be for equipment and materials required for attendance in Iowa in order to
				be eligible for the tuition and textbook tax credit. The following are examples
				of equipment and materials that may qualify for the credit provided they are
				required for attendance in school or for providing private instruction:
a. Pocket folders and binders.
b. Spiral notebooks and loose-leaf
				paper.
c. Writing utensils,
				including pens, pencils, highlighters, colored pencils, crayons, and
				markers.
d. Backpacks.
e. Rulers.
f. Calculators.
g. Scissors.
h. Computers, including rental fees paid to a
				school for the use of a computer.
"Tuition" does not include charges or fees which relate to
				  the teaching of religious tenets, doctrines, or worship in cases where the
				  purpose of the teaching is to inculcate the religious tenets, doctrines, or
				  worship. In addition, "tuition" does not include amounts paid to an individual
				  or other entity for instruction that is supplementary to elementary or
				  secondary school instruction or private instruction. Amounts paid to an
				  elementary or secondary school or to a person providing private instruction for
				  meals, lodging, or clothing for a dependent do not qualify for the tax credit
				  for tuition. "Tuition" also does not include expenses for Internet services or
				  Internet upgrades to facilitate remote learning.