As students from elementary age to grad level across the country head back to school this month, parents are grappling with how to pay tuition, buy school supplies, and fit in all of those extracurricular activities. It can be difficult to sort it all out, and in an era where everyone seems to have an opinion about school (and paying for it), it can be even more difficult to separate fact from fiction. In my Back To School Myths series, I’ll help you sort out truths from myths when it comes to school and taxes.
Today’s myth: School uniforms are deductible.
School uniforms are not deductible. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does not allow a deduction for school uniforms for public, parochial, or private schools. It does not matter if uniforms are required. It does not matter if they are expensive. And it does not matter if the uniforms are so atrocious that your child would never, ever wear them outside of school.
If you are a student at a military school, uniforms are still not deductible – that’s consistent with the rules for public, parochial, and private schools. However, you used to be able to deduct the cost of articles not replacing regular clothing, including insignia, shoulder boards, epaulets, and related items. Relatedly, civilian faculty or staff members of a military school used to be able to deduct the cost of uniforms not intended to be worn outside of the classroom as an unreimbursed job expense. Those deductions were previously available to taxpayers who itemized on Schedule A at line 21. However, unreimbursed job expenses – that’s what is reported on line 21 – were eliminated as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA).
While the IRS won’t allow a tax break for school uniforms, that’s not the case in every state. At least one state, Louisiana, allows a deduction for the cost of school uniforms required by the school for general day-to-day use. Check with your tax professional to find out more about the rules in your state.
That said, even if you can’t deduct the cost of school uniforms, you may still be able to catch a tax break. Funds in a Coverdell Educational Savings Account (ESA) may be used to pay for school uniforms if the uniforms are required or provided by an eligible elementary or secondary school in connection with attendance or enrollment at the school. With a Coverdell ESA, money grows tax-free inside the plan until you take it out to pay qualified education expenses, including uniforms, for a designated beneficiary. There’s no limit on the number of folks who can make contributions on behalf of a beneficiary, but the total contributions for any beneficiary cannot exceed $2,000 in one year (income restrictions apply). Contributions aren’t deductible for federal purposes, but some states may allow you to deduct contributions for state tax purposes.
Bottom line: School uniforms aren’t deductible for federal income tax purposes – but there still may be tax-advantageous ways to pay for them. To find out more, ask your tax professional or financial advisor.
