NY Form IT-272: Schedule A, Credit vs. Deduction, and Filing

To fill out New York Form IT-272, you confirm full-year state residency, list each eligible undergraduate student and the tuition you paid on Schedule A, then complete Part 1 to figure the college tuition credit and Part 2 to figure the itemized deduction, and attach the form to your Form IT-201. The form is built so you can calculate both benefits and claim the larger one, up to $400 per student as a refundable credit or up to $10,000 per student as a deduction.¹

What to Gather Before You Start

Pull together these items for each student you plan to claim:

Form 1098-T (Tuition Statement) from each school attended during the year.
The student’s Social Security number and date of birth.
The school’s employer identification number, which appears on the 1098-T.
Itemized tuition bills and proof of payment. If the 1098-T figures do not match what you actually paid, use the bills to determine qualified expenses.²

IT-272 is only for full-year New York State residents. On a joint return, both spouses must have been full-year residents. Part-year residents and nonresidents use Form IT-203-B instead.² If someone else claims you as a dependent, they file IT-272 for your tuition, not you.³

Confirm Qualified Tuition Before You Enter Any Numbers

Only undergraduate tuition qualifies. Graduate coursework is excluded entirely.² The student does not need to be enrolled full-time or in a degree program; part-time undergraduates at an eligible institution still qualify.

Strip the following out of any amount you plan to enter, even if the school required them:⁴

Room, board, meal plans, and other living costs.
Books, supplies, equipment, and nonacademic fees.
Insurance, student health fees, transportation, and medical expenses.
Any tuition reimbursed by an employer.
Tuition paid by scholarships or grants that do not have to be repaid.

Tuition paid with student loans does qualify. So does tuition paid from a 529 plan, which is treated as paid by you when the student is your dependent.² An eligible institution is any college, university, or business, trade, technical, or vocational school recognized by the Regents of the University of the State of New York or accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency the Regents accept, offering a program leading to a post-secondary degree, certificate, or diploma. Schools outside New York can qualify.

Line 2: Residency Question

Line 2 asks whether you (and your spouse, if filing jointly) were a New York State resident for the entire tax year. If you mark “No,” stop. You do not qualify for the credit on this form.⁵

Schedule A: One Column Per Student

Schedule A has columns for up to three eligible students. The student can be you, your spouse, or a dependent you claim on your New York return. Work down the column:

Box A: the student’s full name.
Boxes B and C: the student’s Social Security number and date of birth.
Line D: whether the student is your dependent. If the student is you or your spouse, mark “No.”
Boxes E and F: the EIN and name of the college. If the student attended more than one school during the year, enter the last undergraduate institution attended.
Line G: confirm the expenses were for undergraduate tuition. A “No” answer disqualifies those expenses.
Line H: total qualified tuition paid for that student across all institutions during the tax year.
Line I: the lesser of $10,000 or Line H. This cap is per student, applied here on Schedule A.

If you are claiming more than three students, fill Schedule A for the first three and attach a separate statement for the rest in the same format, with your name and Social Security number at the top.²

Parts 1 and 2: Run Both Calculations

IT-272 lets you take either the credit or the deduction for a given student, but not both. The practical move is to complete both parts and compare.

Part 1 calculates the college tuition credit using the Schedule A figures. The form applies a percentage to your qualified expenses and caps the result at $400 per student. Carry the final amount to your IT-201 on the line the instructions indicate.⁵ The credit is refundable, so you can collect it even if you owe no New York tax.

Part 2 calculates the itemized deduction using the Line I amounts. You can only use the deduction if you are itemizing on your New York return rather than taking the standard deduction. The instructions include a worksheet that puts the two numbers side by side so you can pick the larger benefit.²

For most filers the $400 credit wins. A $10,000 deduction only beats the credit when your marginal New York rate makes the tax savings larger, and you have to be itemizing anyway. When in doubt, finish both parts and let the numbers decide.

If You File Separately From Your Spouse

Spouses who file separate New York returns each file their own IT-272. You cannot combine students on one form.²

Federal Education Credits Do Not Reduce Your Entry

You can claim the New York credit or deduction on the same tuition dollars for which you took the American Opportunity Tax Credit or the Lifetime Learning Credit on your federal return. New York does not require you to subtract federal credits from qualified expenses when figuring IT-272.² Enter the full qualified amount on Line H.

Attaching IT-272 and Filing the Return

Attach the completed IT-272 to Form IT-201. E-filing software handles the attachment and transmits everything together.² If you are mailing a paper return, use the address that matches your situation:

No payment enclosed: State Processing Center, PO Box 61000, Albany, NY 12261-0001.
Payment enclosed: State Processing Center, PO Box 15555, Albany, NY 12212-5555.
Private delivery service: NYS Tax Department, RPC – PIT, 90 Cohoes Ave, Green Island, NY 12183-1515.⁶

Claiming It for a Past Year

If you paid qualifying tuition in an earlier year and missed the credit, file an amended return on Form IT-201-X with an IT-272 for that year attached. You generally have three years from the date you filed the original return, or two years from the date you paid the tax, whichever is later.⁷

Records to Keep

Hold the 1098-T, itemized tuition bills, and proof of payment (bank statements, canceled checks, or credit card records) for at least three years after filing the return that claimed the credit. That matches the standard audit window.⁸ If your Line H amount came from the tuition bills rather than the 1098-T, those bills are your main evidence that the number was right.

1
Department of Taxation and Finance. College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction
2
Department of Taxation and Finance. Instructions for Form IT-272 Claim for College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction
3
New York State Senate. New York Code TAX 606 – Credits Against Tax
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Department of Taxation and Finance. Instructions for Form IT-272 Claim for College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction
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New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Form IT-272 – Claim for College Tuition Credit or Itemized Deduction
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Department of Taxation and Finance. Mailing Address (Personal Income Tax Returns)
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New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Instructions for Form IT-201-X Amended Resident Income Tax Return
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Internal Revenue Service. How Long Should I Keep Records