Form 1098-T for international students: why most F-1 students cannot use it

Can an F-1 student claim the American Opportunity or Lifetime Learning credit?

Generally no. Publication 519 says: "If you are a nonresident alien for any part of the year, you generally cannot claim the education credits." Those are the American Opportunity and Lifetime Learning credits.

Publication 970 and the IRS education information center give the same rule for the American Opportunity credit. You cannot claim it if you or your spouse were a nonresident alien for any part of the year and did not choose to be treated as a resident alien.

Most F-1, J-1, M-1 and Q students are nonresident aliens for their first five calendar years in the US. Their days do not count toward the substantial presence test for 5 calendar years in total (IRS). Any part of a year counts as a whole year (how to count). In those years, a 1098-T does not make you eligible for the credits, unless you are married and make the choice described below.

Who can claim an education credit on an F-1 or J-1 visa?

Two groups can: resident aliens for all of 2026, and students married to a US citizen or resident who choose to be treated as residents. Both file Form 1040 and must still meet each credit's own rules in Publication 970.

A sixth-year student who is in the US on January 1, 2026 and present at least 183 days in 2026 is a resident alien for the whole year. The exception is a student who qualifies under Form 8843 line 12. One who was abroad on January 1 but still reaches 183 days is dual-status, and generally cannot claim the credits (Publication 519; your sixth year on F-1).

If you will be a full-year resident and got no 1098-T, ask your school for one. In August 2026, Treasury and the IRS proposed a rule on the refundable part of the American Opportunity credit, and the 2026 draft forms add a Schedule 3-A for it. Who loses that part is not settled, so read the 2026 Form 1040 instructions before you claim it.

For married students, the route is a joint Form 1040. A nonresident married to a US citizen or resident at the end of the year can choose, with the spouse, to be treated as a US resident (IRS: nonresident spouse). Both spouses are then taxed on worldwide income for the whole year, and you generally lose treaty benefits while the choice lasts. An F-1 student with an F-2 spouse cannot make it. We recommend professional advice first, because the choice affects your whole return, not only the credit.

Publication 519 names a second route for a dual-status student. It applies if you were a nonresident at the start of 2026, a resident at the end, and married to a US citizen or resident on December 31. You and your spouse can then choose to treat you as a resident for the entire year and file a joint Form 1040. Neither of you can make that choice again for a later year.

Do I attach Form 1098-T to Form 1040-NR?

No. Page 1 of Form 1040-NR lists the income forms to attach: Forms W-2, 1042-S, SSA-1042-S, RRB-1042-S and 8288-A, and Form 1099-R if tax was withheld. Form 1098-T is not on that list (2026 draft Form 1040-NR).

The 2025 Form 1040-NR instructions also say not to add other papers unless they are required. Keep the 1098-T with your copy of the return. A taxable scholarship is reported from Form 1042-S, not from the 1098-T.

What do boxes 1 and 5 tell me about my scholarship?

Boxes 1 and 5 on Form 1098-T can warn you that part of a scholarship may be taxable, but the taxable amount comes from Form 1042-S. If box 5 is larger than box 1, part of your scholarship may have paid for housing or other costs, and that part may be taxable.

For a degree candidate, scholarship money spent on tuition, required fees, and books, supplies and equipment your courses require is tax-free. Money for room, board or travel is taxable, and so is any part that pays you for teaching or research (IRS). Your school reports a taxable scholarship on Form 1042-S under income code 16 and usually withholds 14% (Form 1042-S instructions). Pay for teaching or research usually comes on a Form W-2.

Use the 1042-S amount on your return, not the difference between the boxes. Box 1 counts only payments the school received, so required books you bought elsewhere are not in it. Box 5 can include a grant from your home-country government. For a nonresident alien, such a grant is generally foreign-source and not taxed, even when your school passes it to you (Publication 519).

If Sofia has no SSN, she needs an ITIN (ITIN guide). The scholarship guide and the Form 1042-S guide cover the rest of her return.

Can I deduct my tuition instead?

No. The federal tuition and fees deduction was repealed for tax years after 2020, for everyone, residents included (Publication 970 (2021)).

The tuition break a nonresident degree student does get is the scholarship rule above. Tuition that you or your family pay generally brings no federal deduction or credit while you are a nonresident alien.

What if I already claimed an education credit?

File Form 1040-X with a corrected Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 for that year, and leave the credit out. On the corrected Form 1040-NR, check the "Other" box at the top and write "Amended" (Form 1040-X instructions).

The credit becomes tax you owe, and interest runs on it from the original due date, so correct it soon. This can happen when software for US residents prepares Form 1040 and offers a credit for the 1098-T. Filed Form 1040 instead of 1040-NR? walks through the correction, including where to mail it.

What to do next

1. Work out your residency for 2026. If you are a nonresident alien, keep the 1098-T with your tax records, do not attach it, and do not claim a credit.
2. If your scholarship paid for more than tuition and fees, wait for Form 1042-S. Your school must send it by Monday, March 15, 2027.
3. File Form 1040-NR with Form 8843 by Thursday, April 15, 2027 if you had wages subject to withholding, or by Tuesday, June 15, 2027 if you did not. If you had no income subject to US tax, mail only Form 8843 by Tuesday, June 15, 2027 (deadlines; where to mail).
4. If you will be a resident alien for all of 2026, ask your school for the 1098-T and read Publication 970 before you file Form 1040.

F1TaxReturn prepares the federal Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 for free once the IRS publishes the final 2026 forms; you print, sign and mail them (start a return). It does not take Form 1042-S income, and it does not prepare Form 1040 or Form 1040-X.