New 2026 Tax Benefits for Teachers & Educators: Expanded Deductions for Classroom and Athletic Expenses
Beginning with the 2026 tax year, educators have two possible federal deduction methods for qualifying unreimbursed expenses:
An above-the-line deduction of up to $350, and
An itemized deduction with no dollar cap that may cover qualifying expenses above the $350 limit.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) expands the rules to include certain coaches and interscholastic sports administrators for the itemized deduction only. It also removes the previous exclusion for nonathletic supplies used in health and physical education courses when determining expenses eligible for the itemized deduction. It also allows the itemized deduction for qualifying items used as part of instructional activity, whether or not in the classroom. Separately, the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 (Public Law 119-111, signed September 18, 2026) extends both educator deductions to early childhood educators beginning in 2026.
The most important step for educators is to organize receipts, reimbursement information, employment records, and hour records before tax season. The deduction depends not only on what was purchased, but also on the educator’s position, school, hours, and use of the items.
Two Types of Deductions: Depending on their circumstances, eligible educators may claim one or both.
Above-the-Line Deduction - The above-the-line deduction is claimed in arriving at adjusted gross income. It is available even when the taxpayer claims the standard deduction.
For 2026, the maximum above-the-line deduction is $350 per eligible educator. The deduction is not a reimbursement of every dollar spent. It is a limited deduction for qualifying unreimbursed expenses.
A married couple filing jointly does not receive one combined $350 limit. Each spouse must qualify independently, and each qualifying spouse may deduct up to $350 of his or her own qualifying expenses, for a combined maximum of $700. One spouse cannot use the other spouse’s unused limit.
An Itemized Deduction - Beginning in 2026, qualifying educator expenses may also be treated as an itemized deduction on Schedule A. Unlike the above-the-line deduction, the itemized deduction has no dollar limit. It is also not subject to the 2%-of-AGI floor that applied to unreimbursed employee expenses before 2018, although taxpayers in the 37% bracket may see the tax benefit reduced by OBBBA’s overall limitation on itemized deductions. However, educators must itemize, and the standard deduction may be more beneficial.
Claiming Both Types: Eligible educators who itemize may claim both deductions. Those with more than $350 of qualifying unreimbursed expenses may claim:
o Up to $350 as an above-the-line deduction; and
o Additional qualifying expenses as an itemized deduction.
The same expense cannot be deducted twice. An educator who uses both provisions must allocate expenses between the two deductions. Some expenses qualify only for the itemized deduction, including expenses of coaches and interscholastic sports administrators, nonathletic supplies for health and physical education courses, and items used in instructional activity outside the classroom. Because the above-the-line deduction reduces adjusted gross income (AGI), claiming eligible expenses there first may also affect other tax benefits subject to AGI limits.
For example, assume an eligible teacher has $1,200 of qualifying unreimbursed expenses in 2026. The teacher may claim up to $350 using the above-the-line deduction and deduct the remaining qualifying expenses as an itemized deduction, assuming the taxpayer itemizes and all other requirements are met.
The itemized deduction will not benefit every educator. The taxpayer must compare total itemized deductions with the standard deduction. If the educator’s total itemized deductions are less than the standard deduction, the above-the-line deduction may be the only practical federal benefit.
An Eligible Educator Generally Must:
Work at a school serving kindergarten through grade 12 (or, beginning in 2026, a qualifying early childhood school or childcare facility);
Work for a school that provides elementary or secondary education under state law,
Work at least 900 hours during the school year, and
Pay qualifying expenses that are not reimbursed by the employer.
The 900-hour requirement is especially important. Teachers who start late, retire during the year, work only part time, or work as substitutes may not meet this qualifying threshold.
A school for this purpose is generally a school providing elementary or secondary education, kindergarten through grade 12, as determined under state law. A person does not qualify merely because the person works with children or performs educational services.
Beginning in 2026, a qualifying early childhood school or childcare facility is one that provides educational or childcare services for more than two children under age 6 (not counting children who live there) and that operates at public expense or receives a fee, payment, or grant for those services, whether or not it is operated for profit.
Occupations That May Qualify - Qualifying occupations may include:
Kindergarten teachers,
Elementary school teachers,
Middle school teachers,
High school teachers,
Classroom instructors,
School counselors,
Principals,
School aides,
Coaches employed by an eligible school,
Certain interscholastic sports administrators, and
Early childhood teachers, instructors, counselors, principals, and aides at a qualifying early childhood school or childcare facility.
The employee’s actual duties and the school’s status are important. A job title alone does not establish eligibility. For example, an employee called a “program coordinator” may qualify if the actual duties involve qualifying school instruction or interscholastic sports administration. Conversely, a person with a teaching-related title may not qualify if the person works only in a nonqualifying program.
Special Circumstances for Certain Educators
Coaches - OBBBA expands the educator expense rules for the itemized deduction to include coaches employed by an eligible school to direct, instruct, or train student-athletes.
A coach may therefore qualify even if the coach does not have a regular classroom teaching position. The coach must still work for an eligible school and satisfy the applicable requirements, including the 900-hour test.
A coach who is not also a teacher, instructor, counselor, principal, or aide may claim only the itemized deduction, not the $350 above-the-line deduction.
Potentially deductible coaching expenses may include training supplies, instructional materials, safety equipment used in the school athletic program, team teaching materials, equipment used to instruct or train student-athletes, and professional development courses related to the students the coach instructs.
The expense must be ordinary, necessary, connected with the coaching work, and unreimbursed. A personal gym membership, ordinary personal clothing, personal athletic equipment, or expenses primarily benefiting the coach generally should not qualify.
A coach who works only during a sports season may have difficulty meeting the 900-hour requirement. Coaching hours should be documented through employment records, contracts, payroll records, schedules, and time reports. Volunteer coaching hours generally should not be assumed to count as employee hours.
Interscholastic Sports Administrators - OBBBA also expands qualifications to include interscholastic sports administrators, including school employees who manage the logistical, operational, or financial aspects of athletic programs. The law does not define “interscholastic sports administrator,” so future IRS guidance may clarify which positions qualify. Like coaches, these individuals may claim only the itemized deduction. Eligible individuals must also work at least 900 hours during the school year.
Potentially deductible expenses may include athletic supplies, safety and first-aid materials, instructional equipment, technology and software, professional publications, professional development courses, and other books, supplies, equipment, and supplementary materials used as part of instructional activity.
As with coaches, the expenses must be personally paid, connected to the taxpayer’s school duties, and unreimbursed. A personal gym membership, ordinary personal clothing, personal athletic equipment, or expenses primarily benefiting the administrator generally do not qualify.
Early Childhood Educators – An early childhood educator may qualify for both federal educator expense deductions in 2026 if they work as a teacher, instructor, counselor, principal, or aide in a qualifying early childhood school or childcare facility (or a kindergarten-through-grade-12 school) and work at least 900 hours during the school year. This change was made by the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 (Public Law 119-111), signed September 18, 2026, and applies to expenses paid or incurred in tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.
As a result, preschool, pre-K, and many childcare-center teachers and aides who work at least 900 hours during the school year may now qualify, including those at privately operated or for-profit centers that receive fees, payments, or grants for their services. A program serving no more than two qualifying children, or one that neither operates at public expense nor receives any fee, payment, or grant, would not qualify.
Qualified Expenses - Qualified expenses generally are ordinary and necessary business expenses under Section 162 that eligible educators pay without reimbursement. The expense should be ordinary and necessary for the educator’s work. It should also be connected with the qualifying school position. The educator should be able to explain how the expenses were used for students or instruction. Qualified expenses fall into these statutory categories: books, supplies, computer equipment (including related software and services), other equipment, supplementary materials used in the classroom (or, for the itemized deduction, as part of instructional activity), and professional development courses.
Classroom Supplies - Potentially qualifying supplies include paper and writing materials, folders and notebooks, art supplies, classroom decorations used for instruction, educational games, science project materials, instructional manipulatives, student workbooks, supplementary reading materials, and materials consumed by students in classroom activities.
Books and Supplementary Materials - Books, publications, and supplementary materials may qualify when they are connected with the educator’s current instructional duties. A personal subscription or book purchased primarily for personal interest may not qualify. The educator should retain the receipt and record the instructional purpose.
Technology - Potentially qualifying technology expenses include computers, tablets, printers, educational software, online instructional services, classroom presentation equipment, storage devices, and technology accessories.
Unlike the charitable rules, where there is no deduction for the use of an item, it must be given to the charity, the educator deduction includes the “use” of the item while the educator retains ownership.
The educator should document the percentage of business or instructional use. A computer used for both personal and school purposes may require allocation.
Larger equipment purchases may also require depreciation or other treatment rather than an immediate deduction. Educators should not assume that the full cost of expensive equipment can always be deducted in the year purchased.
Professional Development – This expense must be for professional development courses related to the curriculum the educator teaches or to the students the educator instructs. Education that qualifies for a new profession will not generally apply. Potentially qualifying expenses include workshops, conferences, seminars, continuing education, professional publications, and training related to the educator’s current position.
Health and Safety Supplies – The IRS has confirmed that personal protective equipment, disinfectant, and other supplies used to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the classroom qualify. Other health and safety items, such as first-aid supplies, may qualify as classroom supplies. The educator should document the school-related purpose and exclude any personal-use portion.
Travel - Travel requires special care, as regular commuting between home and a regular school is generally personal transportation and should NOT be included merely because the educator carries school materials. Travel to a qualifying conference, or professional development event may be deductible. For coaches and athletic administrators, travel connected with games or tournaments is not a category of qualified educator expense. Because unreimbursed employee business expenses remain nondeductible after 2025, coaches and athletic administrators generally cannot deduct game or tournament travel, meals, or lodging and should request reimbursement from the school.
Expenses That Generally Do Not Qualify - Educators should not include the following without specific justification: personal clothing, personal meals, regular commuting, personal gym memberships, personal athletic equipment, expenses reimbursed by the school, supplies used primarily by the educator personally, homeschooling expenses, expenses for the educator’s own children, expenses connected solely with a preschool or childcare program that does not meet the early childhood school definition, personal subscriptions, and education that prepares the taxpayer for a new profession.
The fact that an item is helpful at school does not by itself make the item deductible. The educator must connect the expense to qualifying employment and show that the cost was not reimbursed.
Educators Who Do Not Meet the 900-Hour Requirement - An educator who does not work at least 900 hours generally cannot claim either educator expense deduction. However, a separate charitable-contribution possibility may exist if:
The educator itemizes deductions,
The school is a qualifying governmental entity or Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization,
The educator makes an actual contribution of cash or property, and
The educator obtains the required acknowledgment from the entity (a contemporaneous written acknowledgment is required for any single contribution of $250 or more).
Public schools generally qualify as governmental entities for this purpose. A teacher may potentially donate classroom supplies or equipment to the school and claim a charitable contribution when they do not qualify for the educator deductions.
Two OBBBA changes affect this strategy beginning in 2026. First, itemized charitable deductions are allowed only to the extent they exceed 0.5% of AGI. Second, taxpayers who do not itemize may deduct up to $1,000 ($2,000 for joint filers) of cash contributions to qualifying charitable organizations, which generally include public schools; donated supplies or equipment do not count toward this non-itemizer deduction.
The educator should obtain a noncash contribution receipt from the school. The acknowledgment should identify the school, describe the property donated, state whether the school provided any goods or services in exchange, and state the date of the contribution. The educator is responsible for determining the value of the donated property, not the school. If total noncash contributions for the year exceed $500, Form 8283 must also be filed.
The contribution must be completed. If the educator buys a microscope, keeps it personally, and merely allows students to use it, the purchase may not be a completed charitable gift. A charitable contribution generally requires that the property be transferred to the qualifying school or organization.
Records Educators Should Keep - Educators should keep a record of purchases, including dates, amounts, purposes, receipts, reimbursement information, employment and hour records, and any applicable charitable acknowledgments. Qualifying expenses must also be reduced by any tax-free interest from Series EE or I savings bonds, nontaxable 529 plan distributions, and nontaxable Coverdell ESA distributions for the year.
Educators should request reimbursement information from the school before filing. A tax deduction is generally unavailable for an expense that the employer reimbursed or that the educator had a right to have reimbursed but chose not to submit.
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