Illustrated Example(p17)

Bill Pass, age 28 and a single taxpayer, enrolled full-time at a local college to earn a degree in law enforcement. This is the first year of his postsecondary education. During 2009, he paid $5,600 for his qualified 2009 tuition. He received Form 1098-T (shown below) from the college. He and the college meet all of the requirements for the American opportunity credit. Bill's MAGI is $57,000. His income tax liability, before credits, is $8,106. Bill claims no credits other than the American opportunity credit. He figures his American opportunity credit of $2,500, of which $1,000 is refundable, as shown on the Form 8863 on pages 18 and 19.