Educational Tax Credits
The Hope Scholarship is a tax credit, not a scholarship. Tax credits are subtracted directly from the tax a family owes, instead of being subtracted from taxable income like a tax deduction. A family must file a federal tax return and owe taxes to get this tax credit. A family cannot get a refund for the Hope credit if it does not pay taxes. The Lifetime Learning Credit is a tax credit available to individuals who file a tax return and owe taxes. The amount of the credit is subtracted from the taxes owed, rather than reducing taxable income as with a tax deduction. Taxpayers who owe less tax than the maximum amount of the Lifetime Learning tax credit for which they are eligible can only take a credit up to the amount of taxes owed.
