1098-T Questions

The 1098-T tax form is a Tuition Statement provided by higher education institutions to all eligible students who were billed for Qualified Tuition and Related Fees (including non-resident tuition) during the calendar year. The 1098-T form may be used by students or parents to claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit (formerly “Hope credit”) or Lifetime Learning Credit on their federal income tax returns.

The College is required to file 1098-T Tax Forms (Tuition Statement) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

More information on the 1098-T form can be found at www.irs.gov or by contacting the IRS at 1–800–829–1040.

The IRS tax laws state that all tax documents must be submitted by January 31st. You can access your 1098-T form by going to: https://heartland.ecsi.net/index.main.html#/access/lookup. Search for Otis College of Art and Design, insert your demographic information (First and Last Name, SSN and Zip Code on file with Otis College), click on view statement.

Yes, students may view their form online. Access the Heartland ECSI website by going to: https://heartland.ecsi.net/index.main.html#/access/lookup. Search for Otis College of Art and Design, insert your demographic information (First and Last Name, SSN and Zip Code on file with Otis College) and click on view statement.

For a number of reasons, you may not need a 1098-T form. In some cases, your qualified tuition and related expenses could have been covered entirely by scholarships or grants, or an arrangement through your employer or a government entity. Another possibility for not receiving a 1098-T Form is if you’re not a United States citizen, or if you are listed as an international student for tax purposes. Additionally, if you received no academic credit for the calendar year or if your tuition was billed for a different calendar year, you may not receive a 1098-T Form.

• Federal regulations require students to furnish their Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) for federal reporting requirements. These requirements apply to any student, regardless of whether the student seeks or intends to seek the American Opportunity Tax Credit (formerly “Hope credit”) or Lifetime Learning Credit.
• It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that their information is accurate.
• A student who does not provide their SSN or ITIN upon request by the educational institution can be subject to a fine imposed by the IRS.
• The College collects SSN/ITINs through several processes:
  • Admissions applications
  • FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) applications which are submitted annually to Financial Aid for students wishing to receive Federal Financial Aid.
  • Direct solicitation from the Registration office to collect your SSN/ITIN via IRS Form W-9S (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9s.pdf). Registration reviews their records prior to each semester’s registration and follows up with students missing a SSN/ITIN.
  • W9S forms should be submitted in person to the Registration Office located at TheOne Stop

Reporting to the IRS depends primarily on the student’s SSN or ITIN. It is very important for the student to have the correct information on file with the College. If your 1098-T has the incorrect SSN or ITIN, take action immediately by contacting Office of Financial Aid at sfs@otis.edu. The deadline to submit SSN corrections to Otis College is March 20th. Any corrections submitted after the deadline will be processed and applied to the future tax year.

For the security of your information, DO NOT send your social security number via email! Always include your student ID (your X number) when emailing.

After notifying the One Stop, proceed with updating your SSN or ITIN with the College through the following process:

• W9S forms (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9s.pdf) should be submitted in person to the Registration Office located at The One Stop

A TIN is the taxpayer’s identification number and is issued by the IRS. An SSN is a TIN as well, but is issued by the Social Security Administration. Not all taxpayers are eligible for a SSN. Either are used on the 1098-T form for taxpayer identification purposes.

We cannot offer tax advice. Students who have such questions should consult with a qualified tax professional or contact the IRS Taxpayer Assistance line at 1-800-829-1040. Refer to the IRS web site (http://www.irs.gov) for information, including IRS Publication 970 which addresses tax benefits for education.

To file your taxes, you do not need a physical copy of your 1098-T. An electronic copy of your information is viewable on the the Heartland ECSI website. Check with a tax advisor to determine how much of the qualified tuition and related expenses are tax deductible.

Box 2 shows the amounts billed for qualified tuition and related expenses during the previous year. You may be able to deduct some or this entire amount from the income you report on your federal tax return. As of 2018, Box 2 is not being filed and is no longer an option per federal regulations.

The payments included in Box 1 are based on when you registered for classes. Your 2020 1098-T reflects all qualified payments that posted to your student account during the calendar year 2020. For example, your 2020 1098-T will not include charges for the Spring 2020 semester if you registered in November or December 2019 (these charges were reported on your 2019 1098-T). Similarly, your 2020 1098-T will include charges for the Spring 2021 semester if you registered in November or December 2020.

Questions about charges? BFA and MFA students may contact Office of Financial Aidat sfs@otis.edu . Otis College Extension students may contact extreg@otis.edu or (310) 665-6950.

Box 5 shows the amount of scholarships and grants the student received. Box 5 does not include loans. Scholarships and grants reduce the amount of qualified expenses the student can use when calculating a deduction or credit.

As required by FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act), the College cannot provide this information directly to parents, other persons who may claim the student as a dependent, or tax preparers. If the student is claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax returns (such as their parent’s), the student needs to provide the Form 1098-T directly to that person.

Yes. Once logged into the Heartland ECSI website, choose View Past Year Statements. 

Qualified tuition and related expenses are tuition and fees required for enrollment or attendance at an eligible educational institution that were charged on or after January 1 and on or before December 31 of the tax year. They do not include books, room and board, student activities fees, health services fees, insurance, equipment, transportation, or other similar personal, living or family expenses.

Once logged into your Heartland ECSI portal, click on the "Create a Dispute" link. 

Contact Heartland ECSI at 1.866.428.1098. If the issue is not resolved, email sfs@otis.edu with your full legal name and Otis ID number indicating access issues through the Heartland ECSI website. 

Review the online FAQ at: https://heartland.ecsi.net/index.main.html#/access/FAQtaxDocuments#understanding1098TForm or contact Heartland ECSI Customer Service at: cservice@ecsi.net 

Review the IRS FAQ regarding the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund and Emergency Financial Aid Grants under the CARES Act at https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/faqs-higher-education-emergency-relief-fund-and-emergency-financial-aid-grants-under-the-cares-act.