How Teachers Can Deduct Educator Expenses

Teachers, this one is for you. You give so much of your time, money, and energy to ensure your students have everything they need to succeed. Even so, we know you aren’t reimbursed for all the money you spend on necessary teaching materials or professional development courses for yourself. Thankfully, the Educator Expense Deduction has your back when it comes to lowering your taxable income.



If you haven’t maximized your qualified teaching expenses for 2021 yet, now is the time to do so! As the holidays approach, you can give your students the gift of a fully stocked classroom ready to meet their needs while also giving yourself the gift of a tax write off next year.

What is the Educator Expense Deduction?

The IRS allows eligible educators to deduct up to $250 of qualified teaching expenses every year, as long as you were not reimbursed for these expenses by your school, a grant, or by some other means.

If you are married, filing jointly, and both you and your spouse qualify as eligible educators, you can both claim the $250 deduction for a maximum of $500.

To claim the teacher tax credit on your tax return, use Form 1040. You do not need to itemize to claim this tax deduction—those who take the standard deduction can also claim it!

How to qualify for the Educator Expense Deduction

To determine if you qualify for this deduction, you must verify that you meet the following criteria:

  1. You are a teacher, instructor, counselor, principal, or aide for students in kindergarten through grade 12
  2. You work at least 900 hours per school year
  3. You work at a school certified to provide elementary or secondary education under state law (including public, private, or religious schools)

If you meet the conditions above, the IRS considers you a qualified educator, and you qualify to claim the Educator Expense Deduction on your federal return.

You can read more about any potential special rules for this deduction here.

Examples of qualifying educator expenses

The Educator Expense Deduction covers unreimbursed teaching expenses such as books, supplies, computer equipment or software used for teaching, professional development classes, and any other supplementary materials or equipment you bought out-of-pocket for use in the classroom.

Due to the pandemic, the educator credit now also covers any personal protective equipment (PPE) or cleaning supplies you purchased after March 12, 2020, to prevent the spread of coronavirus in your classroom. Common qualified items covered under this category include masks, disinfectant, and any other necessary safety supplies that were not reimbursed by your school or another source.

Maximize your teacher expenses deduction before 2022

If you haven’t reached the limit on qualified expenses for your Educator Expense Deduction this year, the now is the perfect time to do so. Take a little holiday shopping trip to stock up on supplies for your students, and don’t forget to keep those receipts! As a teacher, you give so much to your students — it’s only fitting that you receive the gift of a tax break as well.

The post How Teachers Can Deduct Educator Expenses appeared first on TaxAct Blog.



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