Scaling 1098-T Filing for Growing Student Populations—Without Hiring More Staff

Undergraduate enrollment in the U.S. is projected to grow by 9%, from 15.4 million in 2021 to 16.8 million by 2031. This means millions more students will be attending colleges and universities across the U.S. in the coming years. As more students enroll, universities will start facing more work managing administrative tasks. And one of the most important tasks the university administrative staff must handle is Form 1098-T filing for each student.

A critical IRS tax form, 1098-T, reports tuition payments and related financial transactions. This form is used as a way to determine eligibility for education tax credits like the American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit.  

For universities and educational institutions, issuing these forms is not just a routine task; it’s a responsibility with high stakes for compliance and student satisfaction. 

With 3,931 higher education institutions across the United States working to eFile 1098-T forms annually for millions of students, the scale of this operation is huge. And as student populations keep growing, so does the complexity of reporting. Yet many institutions are managing this process manually or relying on outdated in-house systems that can’t keep pace with changing IRS requirements or increasing volume.

 

Manual Systems Can’t Keep Up with the Growth

Usually, most universities use legacy in-house systems for tax reporting. While these may have worked for smaller student bodies or under older IRS rules, today’s reporting requirements demand far more. 

The IRS has introduced several important updates and requirements over the years that impact how 1098-T 2025 filings are done. These include: 

• Reporting only payments received for qualified tuition and related expenses in Box 1. Reporting amounts billed (Box 2) is no longer required. 
• The educational institution must make a reasonable effort to obtain and validate the student’s TIN (Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)). 
• 1098-T must be issued for every student who paid qualified tuition and related expenses, including part-time and non-degree-seeking students. 
• As of 2024, educational institutions filing 10 or more are required to eFile 1098-T forms. 
• If delivering 1098-Ts electronically to students, the university or educational institution must obtain consent from the student.
  

These practices mean there is a need for higher data accuracy, better documentation, and stricter reporting, all of which put pressure on university administrative teams. Manually managing these tasks increases the risk of incorrect or missing TINs which could lead to potential IRS penalties and confusion among the students. 

And as student enrollment increases, these challenges will also increase. One way to combat this is to turn to automation. 

 

 

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Automating 1098-T eFiling  

By incorporating automation in the eFiling process, universities can plan ahead and file 1098-T efficiently. This will help reduce stress on staff and ensure a smooth experience for students.

 

Data Validation 

One of the most common pain points in 1098-T 2025 filing is data accuracy, especially TIN mismatches and data entry errors. By using intelligent automation tools, student data can be validated in real time, and issues with TINs can be flagged before forms are submitted. This reduces costly errors and minimizes the risk of IRS rejections or audits.

 

Bulk Processing 

With so many forms being processed, there is a need for automation tools that support high-volume form submissions. This will allow universities to upload, validate, and transmit thousands of 1098-T forms in one go. Significantly reducing manual data entry and eliminating repetitive tasks, especially during peak tax season.

 

Scalable and Secure 

Automation of 1098-T 2025 filing should be enterprise-ready. Which means offering robust security features, cloud scalability, and seamless integration with existing ERP or student information systems. Universities should be able to scale up their tax reporting operations without worrying about system overloads or downtime.

 

Compliance Without Complexity 

Automating 1098-T filing ensures that educational institutions are always up to date with built-in compliance checks and updates aligned with the latest IRS regulations. There is no need to manually reprogram legacy systems every time tax rules change. 

 

How to File1098-T With Tax1099   

Tax1099 offers a powerful IRS-approved automation platform purpose-built to help universities scale 1098-T filing without increasing headcount. With features designed specifically for enterprise-level compliance, it streamlines the entire eFiling process.

1. Select the Form:
   Start by selecting Form 1098-T in the Tax1099 dashboard. You can file the current as well as the previous tax year form with Tax1099.
2. Complete required Details:
   Enter the data manually or choose the bulk import option to complete the 1098-T form.
3. Review & Submit:
   Review the information entered on Form 1098-T and make any necessary changes. After reviewing, transmit the completed Form 1098-T to the IRS.

 

Top Features of Tax1099 that will help you file 1098-T efficiently

Simplify your 1098-T filing with our Time-Saving Features!

• Real-time TIN Matching 

Verify Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs) against official records across large datasets within seconds. 

• USPS Address Validation 

Confirm the accuracy of addresses provided by the students on the forms for error-free 1098-T delivery. 

• Internal Audit Checks 

Identify errors during form preparation and correct them to reduce the risk of IRS penalties.

• User/ Rights Management 

Manage user permissions and access for secure collaboration across departments. 

• Secure 4-year Data Storage 

Access up to four years of historical filing data anytime for audit and filing season. 

• 24/7 AI Chat assistance

Get round-the-clock assistance and answers to tax queries with our AI-powered chat.

 

Ready to file 1098-T forms with Tax1099?

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