Are you currently suffering from an acute case of “parasitic education fee syndrome” – a pain that only affects the wallets and purses of students and parents in mid-August and early January?

The federal government, following Occam’s razor, has a prescription for you – or at least a partial one. When you’re calculating your tuition and fees this semester – books included – there are two tax credits to claim on your income tax return this year.

The Hope Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit offer some relief from the high price of education.

Cindy Hockenberry, tax information analyst for the National Association of Tax Preparers, said the Hope Credit gives students a deduction of 100 percent on the first $1,100 of their education expense claims. For expenses after that, the Hope Credit covers 50 percent of next $1,100, but, “You are only eligible for a total refund of $1,650,” Hockenberry said.

“[These] credits are a dollar-for-dollar reduction of tax liability. These are standard deductions,” Hockenberry said.

Students are only eligible to use the Hope Credit for their first two years of college. The other credit, the Lifetime Learning Credit, is open to all students – freshmen to graduate level.

She said only one of the two credits can be applied to a tax return.

“The only restrictions are that you have to go to an accredited university. Also, file your tuition and fees on a 1098-T tax form, and make sure to keep your receipts for the credits,” Hockenberry said.

Eligibility is almost guaranteed for all students with this credit, Hockenberry said, but the only catch is if you keep all your receipts.

Roberta Johnson, director of Student Financial Aid at Iowa State, said as long as you document what the expense was for, the credits are a sure prescription for “fee-itis.” This credit includes textbooks bought online, as well.

“You need to keep receipts so you can document that you bought the books not for leisure but for education,” Johnson said.

For more information on the Hope and Lifetime Learning Credits, visit www.irs.gov.