The fiscal legislation just passed by Congress, known as the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, makes permanent a little-known tax break for people who send their children to private or religious schools for kindergarten through 12th grade.

The break comes via the Coverdell Education Savings Account, a vehicle my colleague Ron Lieber wrote about last summer.

The Coverdell lets you deposit up to $2,000 each year in an investment account. The contributions are not tax deductible, but you do not pay taxes on the earnings you take out, as long as you use them for tuition or other qualified expenses — including those for elementary or secondary education at independent and religious schools, as well as college tuition. Although the contribution limit is low, the tax savings can add up to thousands of dollars for diligent savers.

The tax break was scheduled to expire on Dec. 31. But it was retained, as part of the fiscal legislation’s permanent extension of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-16), according to the financial aid expert Mark Kantrowitz.

Would you make use of such an account for private school tuition?

Article source: http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/03/private-tuition-tax-break-is-made-permanent/?partner=rss&emc=rss