Tuition Payback

[TMAINUI]

What is the name of your state? California

In negotiation with my new employer, they would allow me to turn in tuition reimbursement for courses already started. They also suggested I can try, no guarantees, to turn in courses within this year already completed, which was partially reimbursed by my previous employer. My previous employer offered full reimbursement with 50% payback upon resignation while the new one offers 75% up to $3000.

My question is this, my previous employer paid $7000, of which I paid them back $3500. Should I turn in my tuition reimbursement for $3500? Do I have to pay tax on this? How do employers ensure they do not overlap in their writeoffs? If this is legal, I want to present them my reimbursement request as organized as possible. Thank you!

 

[eerelations]

Most employers don't offer reimbursement for courses already completed prior to hire - for the reason you've suspected, specifically that they don't want to be reimbursing new employees for something those new employees have already received reimbursement from other sources.

The fact that your new employer says it cannot guarantee reimbursement for courses already completed prior to hire tells me that it intends to investigate whether or not you've been reimbursed already for those courses. If you submit an expense report for those courses, all your new employer has to do is call your old employer and ask if you've been reimbursed for those courses already. When your old employer says "yes" you'll look like an intentional double-dipper (meaning someone trying to commit fraud) to your new employer - and what do you think your new employer will do when it finds that out about you?

If you want your new employer to think that you're an honest new employee, then you should do the honest thing. If you submit an expense report for courses you've already been reimbursed for by your old employer, make sure you include on this report how much you were reimbursed, and how much you had to pay back.

 

[ecmst12]

I agree, tell them all the relevant details about the courses. Tell them they cost 7k and you were reimbursed 7k by your old employer but had to pay them back 3500. Let them decide how much to pay you, whether 75% of 3500, or all of it. I do not think they will give you MORE then 3500 in any case.

 

[TMAINUI]

Thanks for the advice. I definitely agree I do not want to double-dip, but I wanted to make sure there wasn't a law or regulation against submitting a tuition reimbursement for the same courses, partial or not.

 

[eerelations]

There's no law against it per se, however, if you submit the expenses to your new employer without telling them that you've already been reimbursed for these expenses, you could be faced with attempted fraud charges.