Request a Review of a Tuition Statement

Before requesting a correction, compare the printed tax year with the ledger period and confirm that you are using the latest statement. Check whether an amount is a charge, payment, refund, or scholarship. A student portal’s total attendance cost will not necessarily equal box 1.

Separate a question about school reporting from a question about credit eligibility. The IRS education-credit guidance explains that Form 1098-T may not contain the full amount relevant to your credit. A difference between tax software’s eligible-expense figure and the statement does not, by itself, establish a school error.

Review the 2026 box instructions for the field involved. For example, box 1 is not reduced by the scholarships reported in box 5. Asking the school to make that subtraction would request a change inconsistent with the reporting instructions.

Find the institution’s information contact on the statement or its official student-account portal. Some schools use a statement service provider. Confirm that any link or address belongs to the school’s documented process before sending records.

Identify yourself using the school’s requested method. A student reference, form year, and case number may be enough to begin an inquiry. If the issue concerns a name or taxpayer identification number, ask for the approved secure update process rather than sending a full identifier in an ordinary email.

The Form 1098-T instructions require an institutional information-contact telephone number and permit certain service-provider information. Start with the contact responsible for the record, since a general admissions inbox may need to forward the request.

Include relevant ledger pages rather than an unexplained screenshot of the total balance. Keep a complete copy of the packet you sent, along with the submission date and confirmation.

Fictional example: Morgan’s 2026 statement reports $8,400 in box 1. Morgan’s ledger shows $8,400 of qualified tuition payments and a $600 refund of those same-year payments after a course cancellation. No other payment or adjustment is involved in this simplified example.

Morgan’s comparison is $8,400 less $600, or $7,800. The inquiry reads: “Please review 2026 box 1. My ledger shows the $600 refund under transaction R-42 on December 12. I have attached the payment and refund entries. Can you explain whether that refund was included in the reported amount, and issue a corrected statement if your review finds one is needed?”

This request leaves room for the school to identify a missing fact. Morgan does not overwrite the original PDF or present the comparison as a completed corrected return. The box 1 instructions provide the reporting basis for the question.

The school may explain that a transaction belongs to a different year, covers a nonqualified charge, or was already reflected elsewhere. Save the explanation with the ledger comparison. If it resolves your question, write down how the figures connect.

If the school issues a corrected statement, download it and mark the original as superseded in your working index. Compare all changed fields, not only the box you initially questioned. Keep the case reference and the date of the replacement.

If the response does not address the transaction, reply with the unresolved point and the original case reference. Ask what additional evidence is needed. Repeatedly opening new requests can separate the explanation from its supporting documents.

A corrected information statement and an amended individual return are different documents. If you have already filed, provide the corrected statement and explanation to the person reviewing your return. Determine whether the change affects the amount actually claimed before deciding the next filing action.

Refunds and prior-year adjustments can have specific consequences under Publication 970 (2025). The relevant year, refund timing, assistance, and expenses used for other benefits all matter. Preserve the earlier return-year records when the adjustment reaches back.

If the school has not resolved the issue by the time you prepare your return, keep the request history and supporting evidence together. Do not silently turn an estimated school box into an “official” corrected form. Document what remains disputed so the return can be reviewed on the actual facts.