Previous semester as an undergraduate student, I won a pretty big scholarship from my university. So, along with the Pell Grant and other state grants/scholarships, that amount was also applied to my tuition and book fees this semester, and the rest was reimbursed to me.
As far as I know, and correct me if I'm wrong, any scholarship or grant money that is not used for educational costs (books, tuition, equipment, etc.) is taxable. Now, I was reimbursed a total of $3k for this semester. Some of that money will go towards transportation and food, and some money will be leftover. Though the total amount of money I receive is still less than the COA, the $3k I was reimbursed will go towards non-educational costs.
So would my $3k be considered taxable income? If so, would the income be considered earned or unearned when it comes to determining whether I need to file a tax return? If its considered earned, than I might not need to report it based on current limits. Also, I am filed as a dependent. Does that change anything?
