Dear Shibu,
In Income-tax act there is no definition for full-time education...
It is simply written to mean " full-time education is that which is not part-time"... So here are some definitions and discussions compiled for ur perusal.,
The following discussions might help u understand about the distinction between full-time and part-time educations...
Discussion 1:- ( income-tax website)
Income tax Act provides two types of deduction for education . These are
Tuition fee paid for children u/s 80C subject to maximum Rs 1,00,000.
Interest on education loan for studies of self or spouse of children without any limit u/s 80E
Now the question raised is :whether correspondence or distance education is covered under those sections of the I T Act for thr purpose of claiming deduction? Let us see what is the meaning of "studies" for the purpose of section 80C and 80 E.
Section 80C(xvii) provides as under
(xvii) as tuition fees (excluding any payment towards any development fees or donation or payment of similar nature), whether at the time of admission or thereafter,
(a) to any university, college, school or other educational institution situated within India;
(b) for the purpose of full-time education of any of the persons specified in sub-section (4);
Section 80E
Subsection 3 of section 80E defines education in following words
(c) higher education means full-time studies for any graduate or post-graduate course in engineering, medicine, management or for post-graduate course in applied sciences or pure sciences including mathematics and statistics;
As can be seen the wording , in both the provisions put stress on "full time "education or studies which means that the course should not be "part time" . There is no distinction by delivery mechanism of imparting education. Distance education is different from the regular course is that the delivery of education may be a combination of ways-postal,electronic and class room. So, in my opinion , if the education is not "part time" , the deduction u/s 80C is claimable for all modes of getting education-whether it is correspondence or electronic or a combination of medium of delivery.
Discussion 2:- (committee for higher education - india)
To be considered a full-time student, high schools, trade schools, and vocational schools generally require 25 or more actual clock hours of classroom attendance each week. Colleges and universities generally require a enrollment for a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester to be considered full-time.
Discussion 3:- (general ideology).
In general terms full-time education is to mean that the person should devote his entire time on education only...
Hope u r doubts are clarified atleast to some extent....
<<<<<suggestions and clarifications are invited>>>>