The amount of an education credit is determined on the basis of the following: 

The amount of qualified tuition and related expenses used to figure an education credit for each eligible student is subject to a ceiling.   

You must use Form 8863 (PDF), Education Credits (American Opportunity and Lifetime Learning Credits), to figure and claim an education credit. 

Expenses that qualify for an education credit are qualified tuition and related expenses paid by the taxpayer during the taxable year.  Qualified tuition and related expenses are tuition and fees required for the enrollment or attendance of the taxpayer, the taxpayer's spouse or the taxpayer's dependent at an eligible educational institution for courses of instruction.  An eligible educational institution means a college, university, vocational school or other postsecondary educational institution that is accredited and eligible to participate in the student aid programs administered by the Department of Education.

Qualified tuition and related expenses do not include the following types of expenses:

In general, qualified tuition and related expenses generally do not include the costs of books, supplies and equipment, because eligible educational institutions usually do not require payment of those costs to the institution as a condition of the student's enrollment or attendance.  For taxable years 2009 through 2012, however, qualified tuition and related expenses include costs of course materials, as well as tuition and fees, required for the student's enrollment or attendance at an eligible education institution.

No. Expenses paid to attend a private high school do not qualify for an education credit because a high school is not an eligible educational institution. 

In general, an eligible educational institution is an accredited college, university, vocational school, or other postsecondary educational institution.  In addition, in order to be an eligible educational institution, the school must be eligible to participate in a student aid program administered by the Department of Education.

No, an individual with a filing status of married filing separately may not claim an education credit.

No, you cannot claim a credit for the amount of higher education expenses paid by a tax-free scholarship.

Yes, fill out Form 8863 (PDF), Education Credits (American Opportunity and Lifetime Learning Credits).

Higher education expenses paid by the proceeds of a government-subsidized loan may qualify for the credit if you must repay the loan. The credit is claimed in the year in which the expenses are paid, not in the year in which the loan is repaid.

The American opportunity tax credit modifies the Hope Scholarship credit for any tax years beginning in 2009, 2010, 2011, or 2012. The maximum amount of the credit is $2,500.00 and 40% of the Hope credit is refundable (up to $1,000).

You may claim the Hope Scholarship credit if all of the following requirements are met:

In general, qualified tuition and related expenses means tuition, fees, and course materials required for the enrollment or attendance of you, your spouse, or your dependent with respect to whom you are allowed a deduction, at an eligible educational institution.  

To be an eligible student, generally, the student must:

The lifetime learning credit is a nonrefundable tax credit with a dollar limit per family that is available for qualified tuition and related expenses of higher education, whether the student is at the undergraduate or graduate level.

Generally, you can claim the lifetime learning credit if all three of the following requirements are met:

You cannot claim the lifetime learning credit if any of the following apply:

The fact that a student has not graduated from high school does not disqualify the student from claiming a credit.  For the purposes of the American Opportunity Credit, a student must be enrolled at least half-time in a postsecondary education program leading to a degree, certificate or other recognized educational credential for at least one academic period at an eligible educational institution.  For the purposes of the Lifetime Learning Credit, a credit can be taken for any qualified educational expenses paid for a student who is enrolled in one or more courses at an eligible educational institution.