Taxes

In general, job-related educational assistance benefits are not taxable, with the following clarifications:

• Currently no tax withholding is required on educational assistance benefits provided to employees up to a $5,250 limit during the calendar year.
• Educational assistance benefits that exceed $5,250 may be taxable, unless they can be excluded as a "working condition fringe benefit."

However, these exemptions can change from one tax year to another. If educational assistance benefits from the Partnership alone or combined with tuition assistance from other NYS agencies exceed $5,250, applicable income tax will be withheld from December 2020 paychecks. Please speak to your accountant or tax advisor for further guidance.