<prompt> Human: Quick question, why do parents claim the college form 1098-t?For example in my situation, I am paying for college all by myself, I do not want my mother to help me with it because It is my responsibilities. I take out small loans in my name every semester to help me pay for my college every semester. First of all, I know I live with my mom and she pays for my home to live at and everything else, but why does my college taxes go to her instead even though the college expenses are mine only? I can understand if she helped me with college which I dont want her to.  <response>: Assuming youre under 24 and a full time student, whether you are a dependent of your parents or not depends on whether you provide more than half of your support. Your support includes your share of household expenses plus your individual expenses including your education. If you dont pay half of your own support from your own funds including your loans then your are their dependent and you are no longer eligible for any of the education credits. In that case its better they take the credit than neither of you take it.If you feel you provide more than half of your support as you pay for your own schooling, work through a worksheet like this one and if you are no longer their dependent then you will be able to take your own education expenses. Youll probably find you dont get as much of a benefit from them as your parents do, as presumably their income is higher.Otherwise you can always ask them to give you a small part of their refund with the argument that you pay for your own education and they are getting a tax credit for it. 