Tuition Fee Waiver
The Economic Growth & Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA) was signed into law on June 7, 2001, Section 127. This benefit enables employers to assist workers to further their education at a cost of up to $5,250 per year tax-free, whether or not the course is job-related.
NOTE: CUNY eligible employees are advised that undergraduate and graduate level courses in which they enroll using the CUNY Employee Tuition Fee Waiver Form OFSR 305 may be reportable as wages and subject to withholding if educational assistance benefits exceeding the $5,250 threshold are non-job related and do not meet the requirements of the "working condition fringe benefit" exclusion.
Procedure for CUNY employees
1. Obtain the CUNY Employee Tuition fee Waiver (Form OFSR 305) from the Human Resources Office of the college of employment. Failure to submit a completed Form OFSR 305 to the Human Resources Office of the college of employment may result in the inclusion of the value of your tuition assistance as wages.
2. Submit the completed Form OFSR 305 to the registrar at the college of enrollment who will complete the registration certification portion of the waiver form. The Registrar will then forward a copy of the waiver form to the Human Resources Director at the College of Enrollment. In addition, a copy must be submitted to the Bursar at the College of Enrollment.
3. The Human Resources Director at the College of Enrollment will forward the OFSR 305 form to the HR Director at the College of Employment.
4. You must submit to the College of Employment evidence of enrollment, including the management certification, bursar's receipt, and the course description, in order to ascertain whether the course you are taking is taxable. The management representative designated by the college will use the University Accounting Office guidelines to determine whether the graduate level course is job related.
5. If the course is determined to be non-job related within the Internal Revenue and University Accounting Office guidelines, the Human Resources Director of the College of Employment will so advise the Payroll Office so that the actual dollar amount of the tuition fee that has been waived will then be reported as wages and be subject to tax withholding. The determination will be recorded on the form.
6. A copy of the certified Form OFSR 305 with a record of transmittal to Payroll will be kept on file at the College of Employment Personnel Office. Employees may request a copy for their records.
IF YOU ADD OR DELETE A COURSE PLEASE SUBMIT THE APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTATION IMMEDIATELY TO HUMAN RESOURCE OFFICE AT YOUR COLLEGE OF EMPLOYMENT.
