Kindergarten, school, university: how to get money back for education

Content

• Tuition Tax Deduction – What Is It?

• What kind of training can I get a deduction for?

• How much can I get back?

• How long will it take to get the money back?

• How do I get a deduction for my children’s education?

• How to get a deduction for the education of a sister, brother?

• What documents are required for the tuition deduction?

• How to apply for a tuition deduction from the tax office and from the employer?

• How to send documents online and without leaving home? We submit a 3-NDFL declaration to the tax office.

• We request a notice from the tax deduction from the employer. Step-by-step instruction.

Tuition Tax Deduction – What Is It?

Everyone who works officially and pays income tax has the opportunity to return part of the money spent on training. This is stated in Art. 219 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. A tax deduction is a tax-free portion of income. This is the 13% that is withheld from salary every month and which can be returned if you paid for the tuition.

What kind of training can I get a deduction for?

The tuition tax deduction refers to social tax deductions. You can reimburse your expenses if you:

• paid for training in institutions and organizations licensed for educational activities.

  You can return part of the money spent both for studying at a college, university, and for classes in various circles in kindergartens, sections at school, if your children studied in music and sports schools, and also if you have passed, for example, advanced training chickens , studied foreign languages ​​or attended a driving school, etc. The main thing is that the organization has a license to conduct educational activities;

• paid for tuition and lessons from an individual entrepreneur. In this case, the individual entrepreneur must also have a license to carry out educational activities, or information about the implementation of educational activities should be contained in the unified state register of individual entrepreneurs about this individual entrepreneur;

• paid for training in a foreign organization. She must also have a document confirming the status of the institution to conduct educational activities.

It’s important

In all cases, you must have on hand an agreement with an educational institution and documents confirming payment for tuition (receipts, payment receipts, cash receipts, payment orders).

How much can I get back?

120 rubles per year – the maximum amount from which you can return income tax for your own education and for the education of brothers and sisters. 13% of this amount is 15 600 rubles. This is how much you can return for each year of study, unless your expenses were less.

It must be borne in mind that you cannot return more funds than the personal income tax withheld from you for the year. For example, if you paid income tax in the total amount of 10 rubles, then you will be able to return that amount for your studies. The unused amount (balance) of the deduction is not carried over to the next year.

50 rubles per year – the maximum amount with which you can compensate for the costs of educating your own children, as well as for children under guardianship. 13% of this amount – 6500 rubles. No more than this amount can be returned for the year for the education of children.

It’s important

You can apply for a deduction for your own studies regardless of the form of study (be it daytime, evening, part-time or other). But you can get a deduction for the education of children, brothers or sisters only in full-time education and until they turn 24 years old. The full-time form implies both studying at a university and visiting a kindergarten, school, sections, etc.

How long will it take to get the money back?

A tax deduction for training can be issued for the period when you worked officially and paid personal income tax. For example, for tuition in 2020, it will be possible to issue a deduction and compensate for expenses at the beginning of 2021. But we know how to get a deduction already in the current year, 2020; more on that below. 

The maximum period for which you can return personal income tax for training is the last three years. That is, in 2020 you can apply for a tax deduction for 2019, 2018 and 2017. Of course, if the tuition fees were paid at that time.

How do I get a deduction for my children’s education?

So, a deduction for your own and foster children can be obtained for education in kindergartens, schools, sections, colleges, universities, the main thing is that the organization and the institution have a license. Let us remind you that you can apply for a deduction for studying in colleges and universities if the child is studying full-time.

Another important point. To receive a deduction for the education of children, a service payment agreement, as well as payment documents, must be drawn up in your name or your spouse (a power of attorney for the transfer of funds is allowed).

How to get a deduction for the education of a sister, brother?

When applying for a deduction for a brother or sister, it does not matter whether you have common or different parents (that is, whether you are full or incomplete in relation to each other). But the agreement on payment for services and documents confirming the fact of payment must be drawn up in your name (if you draw up the deduction). Exception: you can make a power of attorney to transfer money to pay for tuition.

What documents are required for the tuition deduction?

To do this, you do not need to collect a bunch of references. It is enough to have:

• an agreement with the organization or institution where the training was carried out;

• a copy of the organization’s license;

• payment documents confirming payment.

When making a deduction for your own or a child under guardianship, you will need a certificate confirming the full-time form of study (if there is no clause about this in the agreement with the educational institution), as well as a child’s birth certificate. In the case of guardianship (guardianship), you will also need supporting documents (which were issued during the registration of guardianship or guardianship).

To receive a deduction for a brother or sister, in addition to the first three points, you will need a certificate of full-time education (if this is not specified in the contract) and documents confirming the relationship.

How to apply for a tuition deduction from the tax office and from the employer?

There are two ways to get a deduction. First – wait until the end of the current year and at the beginning of the next apply to the tax office with a completed 3-NDFL declaration, supporting documents and receive a payment in the form of a transfer to a card.

Second – do not wait until the year is over, apply to the tax office with the same supporting documents, receive a notice of the right to deduction from them and take it to the employer’s accounting department. After that, personal income tax will no longer be withheld (returned) from the salary for the amount of training costs.

The first method assumes that it will take three months for tax specialists to check the 3-NDFL declaration (they may complete the check earlier, but often it is this period to wait). One more month will need to wait until the funds are transferred (the transfer can be made earlier than 30 days, but again, how lucky).

Pros second way that there is no need to wait until the current year ends. In addition, a period of only 30 days is set aside for checking the documents submitted to the tax office and issuing a notification by them (from the moment of registration of your appeal and documents).