Contents

Reminders ................... 1

Introduction .................. 2

Part I. Home Mortgage Interest ...... 2

Secured Debt ............... 3

Qualified Home .............. 4

Special Situations ............ 4

Points ................... 5

Form 1098, Mortgage Interest 

Statement ............... 8

How To Report .............. 8

Special Rule for 

Tenant-Stockholders in 

Cooperative Housing 

Corporations ............. 8

Part II. Limits on Home Mortgage 

Interest Deduction ........... 9

Home Acquisition Debt ......... 9

Grandfathered Debt .......... 10

Worksheet To Figure Your 

Qualified Loan Limit and 

Deductible Home Mortgage 

Interest for the Current Year .... 11

How To Get Tax Help ............ 14

Index ..................... 17

Reminders

Mortgage insurance premiums. The itemized deduction for mortgage insurance premiums has expired. You can no longer claim the 

deduction.

Home equity loan interest. No matter when 

the indebtedness was incurred, you can no longer deduct the interest from a loan secured by 

your home to the extent the loan proceeds 

weren't used to buy, build, or substantially improve your home.

Home mortgage interest. You can deduct 

home mortgage interest on the first $750,000 

($375,000 if married filing separately) of indebtedness. However, higher limitations ($1 million 

($500,000 if married filing separately)) apply if 

you are deducting mortgage interest from indebtedness incurred before December 16, 

2017.

Future developments. For the latest information about developments related to Pub. 936, 

such as legislation enacted after it was published, go to IRS.gov/Pub936.

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Department 

of the 

Treasury

Internal 

Revenue 

Service

Publication 936

Cat. No. 10426G

Home

Mortgage

Interest

Deduction

For use in preparing

2023 Returns

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Nov 30, 2023
Introduction

This publication discusses the rules for deducting home mortgage interest.

Part I contains general information on home 

mortgage interest, including points. It also explains how to report deductible interest on your 

tax return.

Part II explains how your deduction for home 

mortgage interest may be limited. It contains Table 1, which is a worksheet you can use to figure the limit on your deduction.

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Getting answers to your tax questions. 

If you have a tax question not answered by this 

publication or the How To Get Tax Help section 

at the end of this publication, go to the IRS Interactive Tax Assistant page at IRS.gov/

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Useful Items

You may want to see:

Publication

Divorced or Separated Individuals

Selling Your Home

Residential Rental Property

Tax Information for Homeowners

See How To Get Tax Help at the end of this publication for information about getting these publications.

Part I. Home

Mortgage Interest

This part explains what you can deduct as 

home mortgage interest. It includes discussions 

on points and how to report deductible interest 

on your tax return.

Generally, home mortgage interest is any interest you pay on a loan secured by your home 

(main home or a second home). The loan may 

be a mortgage to buy your home, or a second 

mortgage.

You can’t deduct home mortgage interest 

unless the following conditions are met.

• You file Form 1040 or 1040-SR and itemize 

deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040).

• The mortgage is a secured debt on a qualified home in which you have an ownership 

interest. Secured Debt and Qualified Home 

are explained later.

Both you and the lender must intend that the 

loan be repaid.

Note. Interest on home equity loans and 

lines of credit are deductible only if the borrowed funds are used to buy, build, or substantially improve the taxpayer’s home that secures 

the loan. The loan must be secured by the taxpayer’s main home or second home (qualified 

residence), and meet other requirements.

Fully deductible interest. In most cases, you 

can deduct all of your home mortgage interest. 

 504

 523

 527

 530

How much you can deduct depends on the date 

of the mortgage, the amount of the mortgage, 

and how you use the mortgage proceeds.

If all of your mortgages fit into one or more of 

the following three categories at all times during 

the year, you can deduct all of the interest on 

those mortgages. (If any one mortgage fits into 

more than one category, add the debt that fits in 

each category to your other debt in the same 

category.) If one or more of your mortgages 

doesn’t fit into any of these categories, use Part 

II of this publication to figure the amount of interest you can deduct.

The three categories are as follows.

1. Mortgages you took out on or before October 13, 1987 (called grandfathered debt).

2. Mortgages you (or your spouse if married 

filing a joint return) took out after October 

13, 1987, and prior to December 16, 2017 

(see binding contract exception below), to 

buy, build, or substantially improve your 

home (called home acquisition debt), but 

only if throughout 2023 these mortgages 

plus any grandfathered debt totaled $1 

million or less ($500,000 or less if married 

filing separately).

Exception. A taxpayer who enters into 

a written binding contract before December 15, 2017, to close on the purchase of 

a principal residence before January 1, 

2018, and who purchases such residence 

before April 1, 2018, is considered to have 

incurred the home acquisition debt prior to 

December 16, 2017.

3. Mortgages you (or your spouse if married 

filing a joint return) took out after December 15, 2017, to buy, build, or substantially 

improve your home (called home acquisition debt), but only if throughout 2023 

these mortgages plus any grandfathered 

debt totaled $750,000 or less ($375,000 or 

less if married filing separately).

The dollar limits for the second and third categories apply to the combined mortgages on 

your main home and second home.

See Part II for more detailed definitions of 

grandfathered debt and home acquisition debt.

You can use Figure A to check whether your 

home mortgage interest is fully deductible.

2 Publication 936 (2023)
No

No

Yes

No

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

No

Figure A. Is My Home Mortgage Interest Fully Deductible?

(Instructions: Include balances of ALL mortgages secured by your main home and second home.)

Start Here:

Do you meet the conditions1 to deduct home 

mortgage interest?

Were all of your home mortgages taken out

on or before October 13, 1987?

You can’t deduct the interest payments as home 

mortgage interest. 2

Go to Part II of this publication to determine the 

limits on your deductible home mortgage interest.

Were your (or your spouse’s if married ling a joint 

return) grandfathered debt plus home acquisition 

debt balances $750,000 or less ($375,000 or less if 

married ling separately) (or $1 million or less 

($500,000 if married ling separately) if all debt was 

incurred prior to December 16, 2017) at all times

during the year?

Your home mortgage interest is fully deductible. You 

don’t need to read Part II of this publication. 

Were all of your home mortgages taken out after 

October 13, 1987, used to buy, build, or substantially 

improve the main home secured by that main home 

mortgage or used to buy, build, or substantially 

improve the second home secured by that second 

home mortgage, or both?

Were your (or your spouse’s if married ling a joint 

return) mortgage balances $750,000 or less 

($375,000 or less if married ling separately) 

(or $1 million or less ($500,000 if married ling 

separately) if all debt was incurred prior to 

December 16, 2017) at all times during the year?

1 You must itemize deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040). The loan must be a secured debt on a qualied home. See Part I, Home Mortgage Interest, earlier.

2 See Table 2 in Part II of this publication for where to deduct other types of interest payments. 

3 A taxpayer who enters into a written binding contract before December 15, 2017, to close on the purchase of a principal residence before January 1, 2018, 

and who purchases such residence before April 1, 2018, is considered to have incurred the home acquisition debt prior to December 16, 2017, and may use 

the 2017 threshold amounts of $1,000,000 ($500,000 for married ling separately).

 See Part II of this publication for more information about grandfathered debt and home acquisition debt. 4

3

3

4

Yes

Secured Debt

You can deduct your home mortgage interest 

only if your mortgage is a secured debt. A secured debt is one in which you sign an instrument (such as a mortgage, deed of trust, or 

land contract) that:

• Makes your ownership in a qualified home 

security for payment of the debt;

• Provides, in case of default, that your home 

could satisfy the debt; and

• Is recorded or is otherwise perfected under 

any state or local law that applies.

In other words, your mortgage is a secured 

debt if you put your home up as collateral to 

protect the interests of the lender. If you can't 

pay the debt, your home can then serve as payment to the lender to satisfy (pay) the debt. In 

this publication, mortgage will refer to secured 

debt.

Debt not secured by home. A debt isn’t secured by your home if it is secured solely because of a lien on your general assets or if it is a 

security interest that attaches to the property 

without your consent (such as a mechanic's lien 

or judgment lien).

A debt isn’t secured by your home if it once 

was, but is no longer secured by your home.

Wraparound mortgage. This isn’t a secured debt unless it is recorded or otherwise 

perfected under state law.

Publication 936 (2023) 3
Example. Ari owns a home subject to a 

mortgage of $40,000. Ari sells the home for 

$100,000 to Palmer, who takes it subject to the 

$40,000 mortgage. Ari continues to make the 

payments on the $40,000 note. Palmer pays 

$10,000 down and gives Ari a $90,000 note secured by a wraparound mortgage on the home. 

Ari doesn't record or otherwise perfect the 

$90,000 mortgage under the state law that applies. Therefore, the mortgage isn't a secured 

debt and Palmer can't deduct any of the interest 

paid on it as home mortgage interest.

Choice to treat the debt as not secured by 

your home. You can choose to treat any debt 

secured by your qualified home as not secured 

by the home. This treatment begins with the tax 

year for which you make the choice and continues for all later tax years. You can revoke your 

choice only with the consent of the IRS.

You may want to treat a debt as not secured 

by your home if the interest on that debt is fully 

deductible (for example, as a business expense) whether or not it qualifies as home mortgage interest. This may allow you, if the limits in 

Part II apply, more of a deduction for interest on 

other debts that are deductible only as home 

mortgage interest.

Cooperative apartment owner. If you own 

stock in a cooperative housing corporation, see 

the Special Rule for Tenant-Stockholders in Cooperative Housing Corporations near the end of 

this Part I.

Qualified Home

For you to take a home mortgage interest deduction, your debt must be secured by a qualified home. This means your main home or your 

second home. A home includes a house, condominium, cooperative, mobile home, house 

trailer, boat, or similar property that has sleeping, cooking, and toilet facilities.

The interest you pay on a mortgage on a 

home other than your main or second home 

may be deductible if the proceeds of the loan 

were used for business, investment, or other 

deductible purposes. Otherwise, it is considered personal interest and isn't deductible.

Main home. You can have only one main home 

at any one time. This is the home where you ordinarily live most of the time.

Second home. A second home is a home that 

you choose to treat as your second home.

Second home not rented out. If you have 

a second home that you don’t hold out for rent 

or resale to others at any time during the year, 

you can treat it as a qualified home. You don't 

have to use the home during the year.

Second home rented out. If you have a 

second home and rent it out part of the year, 

you must also use it as a home during the year 

for it to be a qualified home. You must use this 

home more than 14 days or more than 10% of 

the number of days during the year that the 

home is rented at a fair rental, whichever is longer. If you don't use the home long enough, it is 

considered rental property and not a second 

home. For information on residential rental 

property, see Pub. 527.

More than one second home. If you have 

more than one second home, you can treat only 

one as the qualified second home during any 

year. However, you can change the home you 

treat as a second home during the year in the 

following situations.

• If you get a new home during the year, you 

can choose to treat the new home as your 

second home as of the day you buy it.

• If your main home no longer qualifies as 

your main home, you can choose to treat it 

as your second home as of the day you 

stop using it as your main home.

• If your second home is sold during the year 

or becomes your main home, you can 

choose a new second home as of the day 

you sell the old one or begin using it as 

your main home.

Divided use of your home. The only part of 

your home that is considered a qualified home 

is the part you use for residential living. If you 

use part of your home for other than residential 

living, such as a home office, you must allocate 

the use of your home. You must then divide both 

the cost and fair market value of your home between the part that is a qualified home and the 

part that isn't. Dividing the cost may affect the 

amount of your home acquisition debt, which is 

limited to the cost of your home plus the cost of 

any improvements. (See Home Acquisition Debt 

in Part II, later.)

Renting out part of home. If you rent out 

part of a qualified home to another person (tenant), you can treat the rented part as being used 

by you for residential living only if all of the following conditions apply.

• The rented part of your home is used by 

the tenant primarily for residential living.

• The rented part of your home isn't a 

self-contained residential unit having separate sleeping, cooking, and toilet facilities.

• You don't rent (directly or by sublease) the 

same or different parts of your home to 

more than two tenants at any time during 

the tax year. If two persons (and dependents of either) share the same sleeping 

quarters, they are treated as one tenant.

Office in home. If you have an office in 

your home that you use in your business, see 

Pub. 587, Business Use of Your Home. It explains how to figure your deduction for the business use of your home, which includes the business part of your home mortgage interest.

Home under construction. You can treat a 

home under construction as a qualified home 

for a period of up to 24 months, but only if it becomes your qualified home at the time it is 

ready for occupancy.

The 24-month period can start any time on 

or after the day construction begins.

Home destroyed. You may be able to continue 

treating your home as a qualified home even after it is destroyed in a fire, storm, tornado, earthquake, or other casualty. This means you can 

continue to deduct the interest you pay on your 

home mortgage, subject to the limits described 

in this publication.

You can continue treating a destroyed home 

as a qualified home if, within a reasonable period of time after the home is destroyed, you:

• Rebuild the destroyed home and move into 

it, or

• Sell the land on which the home was located.

This rule applies to your main home and to a 

second home that you treat as a qualified home.

Time-sharing arrangements. You can treat a 

home you own under a time-sharing plan as a 

qualified home if it meets all the requirements. A 

time-sharing plan is an arrangement between 

two or more people that limits each person's interest in the home or right to use it to a certain 

part of the year.

Rental of time-share. If you rent out your 

time-share, it qualifies as a second home only if 

you also use it as a home during the year. See 

Second home rented out, earlier, for the use requirement. To know whether you meet that requirement, count your days of use and rental of 

the home only during the time you have a right 

to use it or to receive any benefits from the 

rental of it.

Married taxpayers. If you're married and file a 

joint return, your qualified home(s) can be 

owned either jointly or by only one spouse.

Separate returns. If you're married filing 

separately and you and your spouse own more 

than one home, you can each take into account 

only one home as a qualified home. However, if 

you both consent in writing, then one spouse 

can take both the main home and a second 

home into account.

Special Situations

This section describes certain items that can be 

included as home mortgage interest and others 

that can't. It also describes certain special situations that may affect your deduction.

Late payment charge on mortgage payment. You can deduct as home mortgage interest a late payment charge if it wasn't for a specific service performed in connection with your 

mortgage loan.

Mortgage prepayment penalty. If you pay off 

your home mortgage early, you may have to pay 

a penalty. You can deduct that penalty as home 

mortgage interest provided the penalty isn't for 

a specific service performed or cost incurred in 

connection with your mortgage loan.

Sale of home. If you sell your home, you can 

deduct your home mortgage interest (subject to 

any limits that apply) paid up to, but not including, the date of the sale.

Example. Sasha and Harper Smith sold 

their home on May 7. Through April 30, they 

made home mortgage interest payments of 

$1,220. The settlement sheet for the sale of the 

home showed $50 interest for the 6-day period 

in May up to, but not including, the date of sale. 

Their mortgage interest deduction is $1,270 

($1,220 + $50).

4 Publication 936 (2023)
Prepaid interest. If you pay interest in advance for a period that goes beyond the end of 

the tax year, you must spread this interest over 

the tax years to which it applies. You can deduct 

in each year only the interest that qualifies as 

home mortgage interest for that year. However, 

there is an exception that applies to points, discussed later.

Mortgage interest credit. You may be able to 

claim a mortgage interest credit if you were issued a mortgage credit certificate (MCC) by a 

state or local government. Figure the credit on 

Form 8396, Mortgage Interest Credit. If you take 

this credit, you must reduce your mortgage interest deduction by the amount of the credit.

See Form 8396 and Pub. 530 for more information on the mortgage interest credit.

Ministers' and military housing allowance. 

If you're a minister or a member of the uniformed services and receive a housing allowance that isn't taxable, you can still deduct your 

home mortgage interest. For more information, 

see Pub. 3 (military) or Pub. 517 (ministers).

Mortgage assistance payments under section 235 of the National Housing Act. If you 

qualify for mortgage assistance payments for 

lower-income families under section 235 of the 

National Housing Act, part or all of the interest 

on your mortgage may be paid for you. You 

can't deduct the interest that is paid for you.

No other effect on taxes. Don’t include 

these mortgage assistance payments in your income. Also, don't use these payments to reduce 

other deductions, such as real estate taxes.

Homeowner Assistance Fund. The Homeowner Assistance Fund program (HAF) was established to provide financial assistance to eligible homeowners for purposes of paying certain 

expenses related to their principal residence to 

prevent mortgage delinquencies, defaults, foreclosures, loss of utilities or home energy services, and also displacements of homeowners 

experiencing financial hardship after January 

21, 2020. If you are a homeowner who received 

assistance under the HAF, the payments from 

the HAF program are not considered income to 

you and you cannot take a deduction or credit 

for expenditures paid from the HAF program.

See sections on State and Local Real Estate 

Taxes and Home Mortgage Interest, in Pub. 

530, to determine whether you meet the rules to 

deduct all of the mortgage interest on your loan 

and all of the real estate taxes on your main 

home. For more details about the HAF program, 

see Homeowner Assistance Fund in Pub. 530. If 

you received HAF funds from an Indian Tribal 

Government or an Alaska Native Corporation 

and wish more details about the HAF program, 

see FAQs for Payments by Indian Tribal 

Governments and Alaska Native Corporations 

to Individuals Under COVID-Relief Legislation.

Divorced or separated individuals. If a qualified pre-2019 divorce or separation agreement 

requires you to pay home mortgage interest on 

a home owned by your spouse or former 

spouse or by both of you, the payment of interest may be alimony. See the discussion of Payments for jointly owned home under Alimony in 

Pub. 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals.

Redeemable ground rents. In some states 

(such as Maryland), you can buy your home 

subject to a ground rent. A ground rent is an obligation you assume to pay a fixed amount per 

year on the property. Under this arrangement, 

you're leasing (rather than buying) the land on 

which your home is located.

If you make annual or periodic rental payments on a redeemable ground rent, you can 

deduct them as mortgage interest.

A ground rent is a redeemable ground rent if 

all of the following are true.

• Your lease, including renewal periods, is for 

more than 15 years.

• You can freely assign the lease.

• You have a present or future right (under 

state or local law) to end the lease and buy 

the lessor's entire interest in the land by 

paying a specific amount.

• The lessor's interest in the land is primarily 

a security interest to protect the rental payments to which he or she is entitled.

Payments made to end the lease and to buy 

the lessor's entire interest in the land aren't deductible as mortgage interest.

Nonredeemable ground rents. Payments 

on a nonredeemable ground rent aren't mortgage interest. You can deduct them as rent if 

they are a business expense or if they are for 

rental property.

Reverse mortgages. A reverse mortgage is a 

loan where the lender pays you (in a lump sum, 

a monthly advance, a line of credit, or a combination of all three) while you continue to live in 

your home. With a reverse mortgage, you retain 

title to your home. Depending on the plan, your 

reverse mortgage becomes due, with interest, 

when you move, sell your home, reach the end 

of a pre-selected loan period, or die. Because 

reverse mortgages are considered loan advances and not income, the amount you receive 

isn't taxable. Generally, any interest (including 

original issue discount) accrued on a reverse 

mortgage is considered interest on home equity 

debt and isn’t deductible.

Rental payments. If you live in a house before 

final settlement on the purchase, any payments 

you make for that period are rent and not interest. This is true even if the settlement papers 

call them interest. You can't deduct these payments as home mortgage interest.

Mortgage proceeds invested in tax-exempt 

securities. You can't deduct the home mortgage interest on grandfathered debt if you used 

the proceeds of the mortgage to buy securities 

or certificates that produce tax-free income. 

“Grandfathered debt” is defined in Part II of this 

publication.

Refunds of interest. If you receive a refund of 

interest in the same tax year you paid it, you 

must reduce your interest expense by the 

amount refunded to you. If you receive a refund 

of interest you deducted in an earlier year, you 

must generally include the refund in income in 

the year you receive it. However, you need to include it only up to the amount of the deduction 

that reduced your tax in the earlier year. This is 

true whether the interest overcharge was refunded to you or was used to reduce the outstanding principal on your mortgage. If you need to 

include the refund in income, report it on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 8z.

If you received a refund of interest you overpaid in an earlier year, you will generally receive 

a Form 1098, Mortgage Interest Statement, 

showing the refund in box 4. For information 

about Form 1098, see Form 1098, Mortgage Interest Statement, later.

For more information on how to treat refunds 

of interest deducted in earlier years, see Recoveries in Pub. 525, Taxable and Nontaxable Income.

SBA disaster home loans. Interest paid on 

disaster home loans from the Small Business 

Administration (SBA) is deductible as mortgage 

interest if the requirements discussed earlier 

under Home Mortgage Interest are met.

Points

The term “points” is used to describe certain 

charges paid, or treated as paid, by a borrower 

to obtain a home mortgage. Points may also be 

called loan origination fees, maximum loan 

charges, loan discount, or discount points. 

A borrower is treated as paying any points 

that a home seller pays for the borrower's mortgage. See Points paid by the seller, later.

General Rule

You generally can't deduct the full amount of 

points in the year paid. Because they are prepaid interest, you generally deduct them ratably 

over the life (term) of the mortgage. See Deduction Allowed Ratably next. If the loan is a home 

equity, line of credit, or credit card loan and the 

proceeds from the loan are not used to buy, 

build, or substantially improve the home, the 

points are not deductible.

For exceptions to the general rule, see Deduction Allowed in Year Paid, later.

Deduction Allowed Ratably

If you don't meet the tests listed under Deduction Allowed in Year Paid, later, the loan isn't a 

home improvement loan, or you choose not to 

deduct your points in full in the year paid, you 

can deduct the points ratably (equally) over the 

life of the loan if you meet all of the following 

tests.

1. You use the cash method of accounting. 

This means you report income in the year 

you receive it and deduct expenses in the 

year you pay them. Most individuals use 

this method.

2. Your loan is secured by a home. (The 

home doesn't need to be your main 

home.)

3. Your loan period isn't more than 30 years.

4. If your loan period is more than 10 years, 

the terms of your loan are the same as 

other loans offered in your area for the 

same or longer period.

Publication 936 (2023) 5
No

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

No

Yes

No

No

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Figure B. Are My Points Fully Deductible This Year?

Start Here:

Is the loan secured by your main home?

Is the payment of points an established 

business practice in your area?

Do you use the cash method of 

accounting?

Were the funds you provided (other than 

those you borrowed from your lender or 

mortgage broker), plus any points the 

seller paid, at least as much as the points 

charged?*

Did you take out the loan to substantially 

improve your main home?

Did you take out the loan to buy or build 

your main home?

Were the points gured as a percentage

of the principal amount of the mortgage?

Is the amount paid clearly shown as 

points on the settlement statement?

You can fully deduct the points this year 

on Schedule A (Form 1040).

Were the points paid in place of 

amounts that ordinarily are separately 

stated on the settlement sheet?

You cannot fully deduct the points this 

year. See the discussion on Points, 

earlier. 

* The funds you provided are not required to have been applied to the points. They can include a down payment, an escrow deposit, earnest money, and other

funds you paid at or before closing for any purpose.

Were the points paid more than the 

amount generally charged in your area?

6 Publication 936 (2023)
5. Either your loan amount is $250,000 or 

less, or the number of points isn't more 

than:

a. 4, if your loan period is 15 years or 

less; or

b. 6, if your loan period is more than 15 

years.

Example. You use the cash method of accounting. In 2023, you took out a $100,000 

home mortgage loan payable over 20 years. 

The terms of the loan are the same as for other 

20-year loans offered in your area. You paid 

$4,800 in points. You made 3 monthly payments 

on the loan in 2023. You can deduct $60 

[($4,800 ÷ 240 months) x 3 payments] in 2023. 

In 2024, if you make all twelve payments, you 

will be able to deduct $240 ($20 x 12).

Deduction Allowed in Year Paid

You can fully deduct points in the year paid if 

you meet all the following tests. (You can use 

Figure B as a quick guide to see whether your 

points are fully deductible in the year paid.)

1. Your loan is secured by your main home. 

(Your main home is the one you ordinarily 

live in most of the time.)

2. Paying points is an established business 

practice in the area where the loan was 

made.

3. The points paid weren't more than the 

points generally charged in that area.

4. You use the cash method of accounting. 

This means you report income in the year 

you receive it and deduct expenses in the 

year you pay them. Most individuals use 

this method.

5. The points weren't paid in place of 

amounts that are ordinarily stated separately on the settlement statement, such 

as appraisal fees, inspection fees, title 

fees, attorney fees, and property taxes.

6. The funds you provided at or before closing, plus any points the seller paid, were at 

least as much as the points charged. The 

funds you provided aren't required to have 

been applied to the points. They can include a down payment, an escrow deposit, 

earnest money, and other funds you paid 

at or before closing for any purpose. You 

can't have borrowed these funds from your 

lender or mortgage broker.

7. You use your loan to buy or build your 

main home.

8. The points were figured as a percentage 

of the principal amount of the mortgage.

9. The amount is clearly shown on the settlement statement (such as the Settlement 

Statement, Form HUD-1) as points 

charged for the mortgage. The points may 

be shown as paid from either your funds or 

the seller's.

Note. If you meet all of these tests, you can 

choose to either fully deduct the points in the 

year paid, or deduct them over the life of the 

loan.

Home improvement loan. You can also fully 

deduct in the year paid points paid on a loan to 

substantially improve your main home if tests 1 

through 6 are met.

Second home. You can't fully deduct 

in the year paid points you pay on loans 

secured by your second home. You can 

deduct these points only over the life of the 

loan.

Refinancing. Generally, points you pay to refinance a mortgage aren't deductible in full in the 

year you pay them. This is true even if the new 

mortgage is secured by your main home.

However, if you use part of the refinanced 

mortgage proceeds to substantially improve 

your main home and you meet the first six tests 

listed under Deduction Allowed in Year Paid, 

earlier, you can fully deduct the part of the 

points related to the improvement in the year 

you paid them with your own funds. You can deduct the rest of the points over the life of the 

loan.

Example 1. In 1999, you got a mortgage to 

buy a home. In 2023, you refinanced that mortgage with a 15-year $100,000 mortgage loan. 

The mortgage is secured by your home. To get 

the new loan, you had to pay three points 

($3,000). Two points ($2,000) were for prepaid 

interest, and one point ($1,000) was charged for 

services, in place of amounts that are ordinarily 

stated separately on the settlement statement. 

You paid the points out of your private funds, 

rather than out of the proceeds of the new loan. 

The payment of points is an established practice in the area, and the points charged aren't 

more than the amount generally charged there. 

Your first payment on the new loan was due July 

1. You made six payments on the loan in 2023 

and are a cash basis taxpayer.

You used the funds from the new mortgage 

to repay your existing mortgage. Although the 

new mortgage loan was for your continued ownership of your main home, it wasn't for the purchase or substantial improvement of that home. 

You can't deduct all of the points in 2023. You 

can deduct two points ($2,000) ratably over the 

life of the loan. You deduct $67 [($2,000 ÷ 180 

months) × 6 payments] of the points in 2023. 

The other point ($1,000) was a fee for services 

and isn't deductible.

Example 2. The facts are the same as in 

Example 1, except that you used $25,000 of the 

loan proceeds to substantially improve your 

home and $75,000 to repay your existing mortgage. You deduct 25% ($25,000 ÷ $100,000) of 

the points ($2,000) in 2023. Your deduction is 

$500 ($2,000 × 25% (0.25)).

You also deduct the ratable part of the remaining $1,500 ($2,000 − $500) that must be 

spread over the life of the loan. This is $50 

[($1,500 ÷ 180 months) × 6 payments] in 2023. 

The total amount you deduct in 2023 is $550 

($500 + $50).

Special Situations

This section describes certain special situations 

that may affect your deduction of points.

CAUTION

!

Original issue discount. If you don't qualify to 

either deduct the points in the year paid or deduct them ratably over the life of the loan, or if 

you choose not to use either of these methods, 

the points reduce the issue price of the loan. 

This reduction results in original issue discount.

Amounts charged for services. Amounts 

charged by the lender for specific services connected to the loan aren't interest. Examples of 

these charges are:

• Appraisal fees,

• Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) funding fees,

• Mortgage insurance premiums,

• Notary fees, and

• Preparation costs for the mortgage note or 

deed of trust.

You can't deduct these amounts as points either 

in the year paid or over the life of the mortgage.

Points paid by the seller. The term “points” 

includes loan placement fees that the seller 

pays to the lender to arrange financing for the 

buyer.

Treatment by seller. The seller can't deduct these fees as interest. But they are a selling expense that reduces the amount realized 

by the seller. See Pub. 523 for information on 

selling your home.

Treatment by buyer. The buyer reduces 

the basis of the home by the amount of the 

seller-paid points and treats the points as if he 

or she had paid them. If all the tests under Deduction Allowed in Year Paid, earlier, are met, 

the buyer can deduct the points in the year paid. 

If any of those tests aren't met, the buyer deducts the points over the life of the loan.

If you need information about the basis of 

your home, see Pub. 523 or Pub. 530.

Funds provided are less than points. If you 

meet all the tests in Deduction Allowed in Year 

Paid, earlier, except that the funds you provided 

were less than the points charged to you (test 6, 

earlier), you can deduct the points in the year 

paid, up to the amount of funds you provided. In 

addition, you can deduct any points paid by the 

seller.

Example 1. When you took out a $100,000 

mortgage loan to buy your home in December, 

you were charged one point ($1,000). You meet 

all the tests for deducting points in the year 

paid, except the only funds you provided were a 

$750 down payment. Of the $1,000 charged for 

points, you can deduct $750 in the year paid. 

You spread the remaining $250 over the life of 

the mortgage.

Example 2. The facts are the same as in 

Example 1, except that the person who sold you 

your home also paid one point ($1,000) to help 

you get your mortgage. In the year paid, you 

can deduct $1,750 ($750 of the amount you 

were charged plus the $1,000 paid by the 

seller). You spread the remaining $250 over the 

life of the mortgage. You must reduce the basis 

of your home by the $1,000 paid by the seller.

Excess points. If you meet all the tests in Deduction Allowed in Year Paid, earlier, except that 

the points paid were more than generally paid in 

Publication 936 (2023) 7
your area (test 3), you deduct in the year paid 

only the points that are generally charged. You 

must spread any additional points over the life 

of the mortgage.

Mortgage ending early. If you spread your deduction for points over the life of the mortgage, 

you can deduct any remaining balance in the 

year the mortgage ends. However, if you refinance the mortgage with the same lender, you 

can't deduct any remaining balance of spread 

points. Instead, deduct the remaining balance 

over the term of the new loan.

A mortgage may end early due to a prepayment, refinancing, foreclosure, or similar event.

Example. You paid $3,000 in points in 2012 

that you had to spread out over the 15-year life 

of the mortgage. You deduct $200 points per 

year. Through 2023, you have deducted $2,200 

of the points.

You prepaid your mortgage in full in 2023. 

You can deduct the remaining $800 of points in 

2023.

Limits on deduction. You can't fully deduct 

points paid on a mortgage that exceeds the limits discussed in Part II. See the Table 1 Instructions, later, for line 13.

Form 1098. The mortgage interest statement 

you receive should show not only the total interest paid during the year, but also your mortgage 

insurance premiums and deductible points paid 

during the year. See Form 1098, Mortgage Interest Statement, later.

Form 1098, Mortgage 

Interest Statement

If you paid $600 or more of mortgage interest 

(including certain points) during the year on any 

one mortgage, you will generally receive a Form 

1098 or a similar statement from the mortgage 

holder. You will receive the statement if you pay 

interest to a person (including a financial institution or cooperative housing corporation) in the 

course of that person's trade or business. A 

governmental unit is a person for purposes of 

furnishing the statement.

The statement for each year should be sent 

to you by January 31 of the following year. A 

copy of this form will also be sent to the IRS.

The statement will show the total interest 

you paid during the year, any mortgage insurance premiums you paid, and if you purchased 

a principal residence during the year, it will also 

show the points paid during the year, including 

seller-paid points, that are deductible as interest 

to the extent you do not exceed the home acquisition debt limit. See Part II. Limits on Home 

Mortgage Interest Deduction, later. However, 

the statement shouldn't show any interest that 

was paid for you by a government agency.

As a general rule, Form 1098 will include 

only points that you can fully deduct in the year 

paid. However, it may report points that you 

can't deduct, particularly if you are filing married 

filing separately or have mortgages for multiple 

properties. You must take care to deduct only 

those points legally allowable. Additionally, 

certain points not included on Form 1098 may 

also be deductible, either in the year paid or 

over the life of the loan. See the earlier discussion of Points to determine whether you can deduct points not shown on Form 1098.

Prepaid interest on Form 1098. If you prepaid interest in 2023 that accrued in full by January 15, 2024, this prepaid interest may be included in box 1 of Form 1098. However, you 

can't deduct the prepaid amount for January 

2024 in 2023. (See Prepaid interest, earlier.) 

You will have to figure the interest that accrued 

for 2024 and subtract it from the amount in 

box 1. You will include the interest for January 

2024 with other interest you pay for 2024.

Refunded interest. If you received a refund of 

mortgage interest you overpaid in an earlier 

year, you will generally receive a Form 1098 

showing the refund in box 4. See Refunds of interest, earlier.

How To Report

Generally, you can deduct the home mortgage 

interest and points reported to you on Form 

1098 on Schedule A (Form 1040), line 8a. However, any interest showing in box 1 of Form 

1098 from a home equity loan, or a line of credit 

or credit card loan secured by the property, is 

not deductible if the proceeds were not used to 

buy, build, or substantially improve a qualified 

home. If you paid more deductible interest to 

the financial institution than the amount shown 

on Form 1098, show the portion of the deductible interest that was omitted from Form 1098 on 

line 8b. Attach a statement to your paper return 

explaining the difference and print “See attached” next to line 8b.

Deduct home mortgage interest that wasn't 

reported to you on Form 1098 on Schedule A 

(Form 1040), line 8b. If you paid home mortgage interest to the person from whom you 

bought your home, show that person's name, 

address, and taxpayer identification number 

(TIN) on the dotted lines next to line 8b. The 

seller must give you this number and you must 

give the seller your TIN. A Form W-9, Request 

for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification, can be used for this purpose. Failure to 

meet any of these requirements may result in a 

$50 penalty for each failure. The TIN can be either a social security number, an individual taxpayer identification number (issued by the IRS), 

or an employer identification number (EIN).

If you can take a deduction for points that 

weren’t reported to you on Form 1098, deduct 

those points on Schedule A (Form 1040), 

line 8c.

More than one borrower. If you and at least 

one other person (other than your spouse if you 

file a joint return) were liable for and paid interest on a mortgage that was for your home, and 

the other person received a Form 1098 showing 

the interest that was paid during the year, attach 

a statement to your paper return explaining this. 

Show how much of the interest each of you 

paid, and give the name and address of the person who received the form. Deduct your share 

of the interest on Schedule A (Form 1040), 

line 8b, and print “See attached” next to the line.

Similarly, if you're the payer of record on a 

mortgage on which there are other borrowers 

entitled to a deduction for the interest shown on 

the Form 1098 you received, deduct only your 

share of the interest on Schedule A (Form 

1040), line 8a. Let each of the other borrowers 

know what their share is.

Mortgage proceeds used for business or investment. If your home mortgage interest deduction is limited under the rules explained in 

Part II, but all or part of the mortgage proceeds 

were used for business, investment, or other 

deductible activities, see Table 2 near the end 

of this publication. It shows where to deduct the 

part of your excess interest that is for those activities. The Table 1 Instructions for line 16 in 

Part II explain how to divide the excess interest 

among the activities for which the mortgage 

proceeds were used.

Special Rule for 

Tenant-Stockholders in 

Cooperative Housing 

Corporations

A qualified home includes stock in a cooperative housing corporation owned by a tenant-stockholder. This applies only if the tenant-stockholder is entitled to live in the house or 

apartment because of owning stock in the cooperative.

Cooperative housing corporation. This is a 

corporation that meets all of the following conditions.

1. Has only one class of stock outstanding.

2. Has no stockholders other than those that 

own the stock who can live in a house, 

apartment, or house trailer owned or 

leased by the corporation.

3. Has no stockholders who can receive any 

distribution out of capital other than on a 

liquidation of the corporation.

4. Meets at least one of the following requirements.

a. Receives at least 80% of its gross income for the year in which the mortgage interest is paid or incurred from 

tenant-stockholders. For this purpose, 

gross income is all income received 

during the entire year, including 

amounts received before the corporation changed to cooperative ownership.

b. At all times during the year, at least 

80% of the total square footage of the 

corporation's property is used or available for use by the tenant-stockholders for residential or residential-related use.

c. At least 90% of the corporation's expenditures paid or incurred during the 

year are for the acquisition, construction, management, maintenance, or 

care of corporate property for the benefit of the tenant-stockholders.

8 Publication 936 (2023)
Stock used to secure debt. In some cases, 

you can't use your cooperative housing stock to 

secure a debt because of either:

• Restrictions under local or state law, or

• Restrictions in the cooperative agreement 

(other than restrictions in which the main 

purpose is to permit the tenantstockholder to treat unsecured debt as secured debt).

However, you can treat a debt as secured by 

the stock to the extent that the proceeds are 

used to buy the stock under the allocation of interest rules.

Figuring deductible home mortgage interest. Generally, if you're a tenant-stockholder, 

you can deduct payments you make for your 

share of the interest paid or incurred by the cooperative. The interest must be on a debt to 

buy, build, change, improve, or maintain the cooperative's housing, or on a debt to buy the 

land.

Figure your share of this interest by multiplying the total by the following fraction.

Your shares of stock in the 

cooperative

The total shares of stock 

in the cooperative

Cooperative apartment owner. If you own 

a cooperative apartment, you must reduce your 

home mortgage interest deduction by your 

share of any cash portion of a patronage dividend that the cooperative receives. The patronage dividend is a partial refund to the cooperative housing corporation of mortgage interest if 

paid in a prior year.

If you receive a Form 1098 from the cooperative housing corporation, the form should show 

only the amount you can deduct.

Limits on deduction. To figure how the 

limits discussed in Part II apply to you, treat your 

share of the cooperative's debt as debt incurred 

by you. The cooperative should determine your 

share of its grandfathered debt, and its home 

acquisition debt. (Your share of each of these 

types of debt is equal to the average balance of 

each debt multiplied by the fraction just given.) 

After your share of the average balance of each 

type of debt is determined, you include it with 

the average balance of that type of debt secured by your stock.

Form 1098. The cooperative should give 

you a Form 1098 showing your share of the interest. Use the rules in this publication to determine your deductible mortgage interest. 

Part II. Limits on Home 

Mortgage Interest 

Deduction

This part of the publication discusses the limits 

on deductible home mortgage interest. These 

limits apply to your home mortgage interest expense if you have a home mortgage that doesn't 

fit into any of the three categories listed at the 

beginning of Part I under Fully deductible interest, earlier.

Your home mortgage interest deduction is 

limited to the interest on the part of your home 

mortgage debt that isn't more than your qualified loan limit. This is the part of your home 

mortgage debt that is grandfathered debt or that 

isn't more than the limits for home acquisition 

debt. Table 1 can help you figure your qualified 

loan limit and your deductible home mortgage 

interest.

Home Acquisition Debt

Home acquisition debt is a mortgage you took 

out after October 13, 1987, to buy, build, or substantially improve a qualified home (your main 

or second home). It must also be secured by 

that home.

If the amount of your mortgage is more than 

the cost of the home plus the cost of any substantial improvements, only the debt that isn't 

more than the cost of the home plus substantial 

improvements qualifies as home acquisition 

debt.

Home acquisition debt limit. The total 

amount you (or your spouse if married filing a 

joint return) can treat as home acquisition debt 

on your main home and second home is limited 

based on when the debt is secured.

• For debt secured after October 13, 1987, 

and prior to December 16, 2017, the limit is 

$1 million ($500,000 if married filing separately).

• For debt secured after December 15, 

2017, the limit is $750,000 ($375,000 if 

married filing separately). However, a taxpayer who enters into a written binding 

contract before December 15, 2017, to 

close on the purchase of a principal residence before January 1, 2018, and who 

purchases such residence before April 1, 

2018, is considered to have incurred the 

home acquisition debt prior to December 

16, 2017.

The limits above are reduced (but not below 

zero) by the amount of your grandfathered debt 

(discussed later).

Refinanced home acquisition debt. Any secured debt you use to refinance home acquisition debt is treated as home acquisition debt. 

However, the new debt will qualify as home acquisition debt only up to the amount of the balance of the old mortgage principal just before 

the refinancing. Any additional debt not used to 

buy, build, or substantially improve a qualified 

home isn't home acquisition debt.

Mortgage that qualifies later. A mortgage 

that doesn't qualify as home acquisition debt 

because it doesn't meet all the requirements 

may qualify at a later time. For example, a debt 

that you use to buy your home may not qualify 

as home acquisition debt because it isn't secured by the home. However, if the debt is later 

secured by the home, it may qualify as home 

acquisition debt after that time. Similarly, a debt 

that you use to buy property may not qualify because the property isn't a qualified home. However, if the property later becomes a qualified 

home, the debt may qualify after that time.

Mortgage treated as used to buy, build, or 

substantially improve home. A mortgage secured by a qualified home may be treated as 

home acquisition debt, even if you don't actually 

use the proceeds to buy, build, or substantially 

improve the home. This applies in the following 

situations.

1. You buy your home within 90 days before 

or after the date you take out the mortgage. The home acquisition debt is limited 

to the home's cost, plus the cost of any 

substantial improvements within the limit 

described below in (2) or (3). (See Example 1, later.)

2. You build or substantially improve your 

home and take out the mortgage before 

the work is completed. The home acquisition debt is limited to the amount of the expenses incurred within 24 months before 

the date of the mortgage.

3. You build or substantially improve your 

home and take out the mortgage within 90 

days after the work is completed. The 

home acquisition debt is limited to the 

amount of the expenses incurred within 

the period beginning 24 months before the 

work is completed and ending on the date 

of the mortgage. (See Example 2, later.)

Example 1. You bought your main home on 

June 3 for $175,000. You paid for the home with 

cash you got from the sale of your old home. On 

July 15, you took out a mortgage of $150,000 

secured by your main home. You used the 

$150,000 to invest in stocks. You can treat the 

mortgage as taken out to buy your home because you bought the home within 90 days before you took out the mortgage. The entire mortgage qualifies as home acquisition debt 

because it wasn't more than the home's cost.

Example 2. On January 31, Logan began 

building a home on the lot that Logan owned. 

Logan used $45,000 of personal funds to build 

the home. The home was completed on October 31. On November 21, Logan took out a 

$36,000 mortgage that was secured by the 

home. The mortgage can be treated as used to 

build the home because it was taken out within 

90 days after the home was completed. The entire mortgage qualifies as home acquisition debt 

because it wasn't more than the expenses incurred within the period beginning 24 months 

before the home was completed. This is illustrated by Figure C.

Figure C.

Logan

Starts 

Building 

Home

Home 

Completed 

($45,000 in 

Personal 

Funds Used)

$36,000 

Mortgage 

Taken Out

Jan. 31 Oct. 31 Nov. 21

9 Months 

(Within 24 Months)

22 Days

 (Within 90 Days)

Publication 936 (2023) 9
Date of the mortgage. The date you take 

out your mortgage is the day the loan proceeds 

are disbursed. This is generally the closing 

date. You can treat the day you apply in writing 

for your mortgage as the date you take it out. 

However, this applies only if you receive the 

loan proceeds within a reasonable time (such 

as within 30 days) after your application is approved. If a timely application you make is rejected, a reasonable additional time will be allowed 

to make a new application.

Cost of home or improvements. To determine your cost, include amounts paid to acquire 

any interest in a qualified home or to substantially improve the home.

The cost of building or substantially improving a qualified home includes the costs to acquire real property and building materials, fees 

for architects and design plans, and required 

building permits.

Substantial improvement. An improvement is substantial if it:

• Adds to the value of your home,

• Prolongs your home's useful life, or

• Adapts your home to new uses.

Repairs that maintain your home in good 

condition, such as repainting your home, aren't 

substantial improvements. However, if you paint 

your home as part of a renovation that substantially improves your qualified home, you can include the painting costs in the cost of the improvements.

Acquiring an interest in a home because 

of a divorce. If you incur debt to acquire the interest of a spouse or former spouse in a home 

because of a divorce or legal separation, you 

can treat that debt as home acquisition debt.

Part of home not a qualified home. To 

figure your home acquisition debt, you must divide the cost of your home and improvements 

between the part of your home that is a qualified 

home and any part that isn't a qualified home. 

See Divided use of your home under Qualified 

Home in Part I, earlier.

Grandfathered Debt

If you took out a mortgage on your home before 

October 14, 1987, or you refinanced such a 

mortgage, it may qualify as grandfathered debt. 

To qualify, it must have been secured by your 

qualified home on October 13, 1987, and at all 

times after that date. How you used the proceeds doesn't matter.

Grandfathered debt isn't limited. All of the interest you paid on grandfathered debt is fully 

deductible home mortgage interest. However, 

the amount of your grandfathered debt reduces 

the limit for home acquisition debt.

Refinanced grandfathered debt. If you refinanced grandfathered debt after October 13, 

1987, for an amount that wasn't more than the 

mortgage principal left on the debt, then you still 

treat it as grandfathered debt. To the extent the 

new debt is more than that mortgage principal, 

it is treated as home acquisition debt (so long 

as the proceeds were used to buy, build, or substantially improve the home), and the mortgage 

is a mixed-use mortgage (discussed later under 

Average Mortgage Balance in the Table 1 Instructions). The debt must be secured by the 

qualified home.

You treat grandfathered debt that was refinanced after October 13, 1987, as grandfathered debt only for the term left on the debt that 

was refinanced. After that, you treat it as home 

acquisition debt to the extent that it was used to 

buy, build, or substantially improve the home.

Exception. If the debt before refinancing 

was like a balloon note (the principal on the 

debt wasn't amortized over the term of the 

debt), then you treat the refinanced debt as 

grandfathered debt for the term of the first refinancing. This term can't be more than 30 years.

Example. You took out a $200,000 first 

mortgage on your home in 1986. The mortgage 

was a 7-year balloon note and the entire balance on the note was due in 1993. You refinanced the debt in 1993 with a new 30-year 

mortgage. The refinanced debt is treated as 

grandfathered debt for its entire term (30 years).

Table 1 Instructions

You can deduct all of the interest you paid during the year on mortgages secured by your 

main home or second home in either of the following two situations.

• All the mortgages are grandfathered debt.

• The total of the mortgage balances for the 

entire year is within the limits discussed 

earlier under Home Acquisition Debt.

In either of those cases, you don't need Table 1. 

Otherwise, you can use Table 1 to determine 

your qualified loan limit and deductible home 

mortgage interest.

Fill out only one Table 1 for both your 

main and second home regardless of 

how many mortgages you have.

TIP

10 Publication 936 (2023)
Worksheet To Figure Your Qualified Loan Limit and Deductible Home 

Mortgage Interest for the Current Year

See the Table 1 Instructions.

Table 1. 

Keep for Your Records

Part I Qualified Loan Limit

1. Enter the average balance of all your grandfathered debt. See the line 1 

instructions ................................................................... 1.

2. Enter the average balance of all your home acquisition debt incurred after October 

12, 1987, and prior to December 16, 2017. See the line 2 instructions .............. 2.

3. Enter $1,000,000 ($500,000 if married filing separately) .......................... 3.

4. Enter the larger of the amount on line 1 or the amount on line 3 .................... 4.

5. Add the amounts on lines 1 and 2. Enter the total here ............................ 5.

6. Enter the smaller of the amount on line 4 or the amount on line 5 .................. 6.

• If you have no home acquisition debt incurred after December 15, 2017, or the 

amount on line 6 is $750,000 ($375,000 if married filing separately) or more, 

line 6 is your qualified loan limit. Enter this amount on line 11 and go to Part II, 

line 12.

• If you have home acquisition debt incurred after December 15, 2017, go to line 7.

7. Enter the average balance of all your home acquisition debt incurred after December 

15, 2017. See the line 7 instructions ............................................ 7.

8. Enter $750,000 ($375,000 if married filing separately) ............................ 8.

9. Enter the larger of the amount on line 6 or the amount on line 8 .................... 9.

10. Add the amounts on lines 6 and 7. Enter the total here ............................ 10.

11. Enter the smaller of line 9 or line 10. This is your qualified loan limit ............. 11.

Part II Deductible Home Mortgage Interest

12. Enter the total of the average balances of all mortgages from lines 1, 2, and 7 on all 

qualified homes.

See the line 12 instructions .................................................... 12.

• If line 11 is less than line 12, go on to line 13.

• If line 11 is equal to or more than line 12, stop here. All of your interest on all the 

mortgages included on line 12 is deductible as home mortgage interest on 

Schedule A (Form 1040).

13. Enter the total amount of interest that you paid on the loans from line 12. See the 

line 13 instructions ............................................................ 13.

14. Divide the amount on line 11 by the amount on line 12. Enter the result as a decimal 

amount (rounded to three places) ............................................... 14. × .

15. Multiply the amount on line 13 by the decimal amount on line 14. Enter the result. 

This is your deductible home mortgage interest. Enter this amount on 

Schedule A (Form 1040) ....................................................... 15.

16. Subtract the amount on line 15 from the amount on line 13. Enter the result. This 

isn't home mortgage interest. See the line 16 instructions ...................... 16.

Publication 936 (2023) 11
Average Mortgage Balance

You have to figure the average balance of each 

mortgage to determine your qualified loan limit. 

You need these amounts to complete lines 1, 2, 

7, and 12 of Table 1. You can use the highest 

mortgage balances during the year, but you 

may benefit most by using the average balances. The following are methods you can use to 

figure your average mortgage balances. However, if a mortgage has more than one category 

of debt, see Mixed-use mortgages, later, in this 

section.

Average of first and last balance method. 

You can use this method if all the following apply.

• You didn't borrow any new amounts on the 

mortgage during the year. (This doesn't include borrowing the original mortgage 

amount.)

• You didn't prepay more than 1 month's 

principal during the year. (This includes 

prepayment by refinancing your home or 

by applying proceeds from its sale.)

• You had to make level payments at fixed 

equal intervals on at least a semi-annual 

basis. You treat your payments as level 

even if they were adjusted from time to 

time because of changes in the interest 

rate.

To figure your average balance, complete the following worksheet.

1. Enter the balance as of the first 

day of the year that the 

mortgage was secured by your 

qualified home during the year 

(generally, January 1) ........

2. Enter the balance as of the last 

day of the year that the 

mortgage was secured by your 

qualified home during the year 

(generally, December 31) .....

3. Add amounts on lines 1 and 

2 ..........................

4. Divide the amount on line 3 by 

2.0. Enter the result ..........

Interest paid divided by interest rate 

method. You can use this method if at all times 

in 2023 the mortgage was secured by your 

qualified home and the interest was paid at 

least monthly.

Complete the following worksheet to 

figure your average balance.

1. Enter the interest paid in 2023. 

Don't include points, or any 

interest paid in 2023 that is for a 

year after 2023. However, do 

include interest that is for 2023 

but was paid in an earlier 

year ........................

2. Enter the annual interest rate on 

the mortgage. If the interest rate 

varied in 2023, use the lowest 

rate for the year ..............

3. Divide the amount on line 1 by 

the amount on line 2. Enter the 

result .......................

Example. You had a mortgage secured by 

your main home all year. You paid interest of 

$2,500 on this loan. The interest rate on the 

loan was 9% (0.09) all year. Your average balance using this method is $27,778, figured as 

follows.

1. Enter the interest paid in 2023. 

Don’t include points, mortgage 

insurance premiums, or any 

interest paid in 2023 that is for 

a year after 2023. However, do 

include interest that is for 2023 

but was paid in an earlier 

year ....................... $2,500

2. Enter the annual interest rate 

on the mortgage. If the interest 

rate varied in 2023, use the 

lowest rate for the year ....... 0.09

3. Divide the amount on line 1 by 

the amount on line 2. Enter the 

result ...................... $27,778

Statements provided by your lender. If you 

receive monthly statements showing the closing 

balance or the average balance for the month, 

you can use either to figure your average balance for the year. You can treat the balance as 

zero for any month the mortgage wasn't secured by your qualified home.

For each mortgage, figure your average balance by adding your monthly closing or average 

balances and dividing that total by the number 

of months the home secured by that mortgage 

was a qualified home during the year.

If your lender can give you your average balance for the year, you can use that amount.

Example. You had a home loan secured by 

your main home all year. You received monthly 

statements showing your average balance for 

each month. You can figure your average balance for the year by adding your monthly average balances and dividing the total by 12.

Mixed-use mortgages. A mixed-use mortgage is a loan that consists of more than one of 

the three categories of debt (grandfathered 

debt, home acquisition debt, and home equity 

debt). For example, a mortgage you took out 

during the year is a mixed-use mortgage if you 

used its proceeds partly to refinance a mortgage that you took out in an earlier year to buy 

your home (home acquisition debt) and partly to 

buy a car (home equity debt).

Complete lines 1, 2, and 7 of Table 1 by including the separate average balances of any 

grandfathered debt and home acquisition debt 

(determined by the date the debt was acquired) 

in your mixed-use mortgage. Don’t use the 

methods described earlier in this section to figure the average balance of either category. Instead, for each category, use the following 

method.

1. Figure the balance of that category of debt 

for each month. This is the amount of the 

loan proceeds allocated to that category, 

reduced by your principal payments on the 

mortgage previously applied to that category. Principal payments on a mixed-use 

mortgage are applied in full to each category of debt, until its balance is zero, in the 

following order.

a. First, any home equity debt not used 

to buy, build, or substantially improve 

the home.

b. Next, any grandfathered debt.

c. Finally, any home acquisition debt.

2. Add together the monthly balances figured 

for b and c in (1).

Complete line 12 of Table 1 using the figure 

from line 2 above.

Example 1. In 1986, you took out a first 

mortgage of $1,400,000. The mortgage was a 

7-year balloon note and the entire balance on 

the note was due in 1993. You refinanced the 

debt in 1993 with a new 30-year mortgage 

(grandfathered debt). On March 2, 2023, when 

the home had a fair market value of $1,700,000 

and you owed $500,000 on the mortgage, you 

took out a second mortgage for $200,000. You 

used $180,000 of the proceeds to make substantial improvements to your home (home acquisition debt) and the remaining $20,000 to 

buy a car (home equity debt). Under the loan 

agreement, you must make principal payments 

of $1,000 at the end of each month. During 

2023, your principal payments on the second 

mortgage totaled $10,000.

To complete Table 1, line 7, you must figure 

a separate average balance for the part of your 

second mortgage that is home acquisition debt. 

The January and February balances were zero. 

The March through December balances were 

all $180,000 because none of your principal 

payments are applied to the home acquisition 

debt. (They are all applied to the home equity 

debt, reducing it to $10,000 [$20,000 − 

$10,000].) The monthly balances of the home 

acquisition debt total $1,800,000 ($180,000 × 

10). Therefore, the average balance of the 

home acquisition debt for 2023 was $150,000 

($1,800,000 ÷ 12).

Example 2. The facts are the same as in 

Example 1. In 2024, your January through October principal payments on your second mortgage are applied to the home equity debt, reducing it to zero. The balance of the home 

acquisition debt remains $180,000 for each of 

those months. Because your November and 

December principal payments are applied to the 

home acquisition debt, the November balance 

12 Publication 936 (2023)
is $179,000 ($180,000 − $1,000) and the December balance is $178,000 ($180,000 − 

$2,000). The monthly balances total $2,157,000 

[($180,000 × 10) + $179,000 + $178,000]. 

Therefore, the average balance of the home acquisition debt for 2024 is $179,750 ($2,157,000 

÷ 12).

Line 1

Figure the average balance for the current year 

of each mortgage you had on all qualified 

homes on October 13, 1987 (grandfathered 

debt). Add the results together and enter the total on line 1. Include the average balance for the 

current year for any grandfathered debt part of a 

mixed-use mortgage.

Line 2

Figure the average balance for the current year 

of each mortgage you took out on all qualified 

homes after October 13, 1987, and prior to December 16, 2017, to buy, build, or substantially 

improve the home (home acquisition debt). Add 

the results together and enter the total on line 2. 

Include the average balance for the current year 

for any home acquisition debt part of a 

mixed-use mortgage.

Line 7

Figure the average balance for the current year 

of each mortgage you took out on all qualified 

homes after December 15, 2017, to buy, build, 

or substantially improve the home (home acquisition debt). Add the results together and enter the total on line 7.

Line 12

Figure the average balance for the current year 

of each outstanding home mortgage. Add the 

average balances together and enter the total 

on line 12. See Average Mortgage Balance, 

earlier.

Note. If the average balance consists of 

more than one category of debt (grandfathered 

debt, home acquisition debt, and home equity 

debt), see Mixed-use mortgages, earlier, to figure the average mortgage balance.

Line 13

If you make payments to a financial institution, 

or to a person whose business is making loans, 

you should get Form 1098 or a similar statement from the lender. This form will show the 

amount of interest to enter on line 13. Also, include on this line any other interest payments 

made on debts secured by a qualified home for 

which you didn't receive a Form 1098. Don't include points or mortgage insurance premiums 

on this line.

Claiming your deductible points. Figure 

your deductible points as follows.

1. Figure your deductible points for the current year using the rules explained under 

Points in Part I, earlier.

2. Multiply the amount in item 1 by the decimal amount on line 14. Enter the result on 

Schedule A (Form 1040), line 8a or 8c, 

whichever applies. This amount is fully deductible.

3. Subtract the result in item 2 from the 

amount in item 1. This amount isn't deductible as home mortgage interest. However, 

if you used any of the loan proceeds for 

business or investment activities, see the 

instructions for line 16 next.

Line 16

You can't deduct the amount of interest on 

line 16 as home mortgage interest. If you didn't 

use any of the proceeds of any mortgage included on line 12 of the worksheet for business, investment, or other deductible activities, then all 

the interest on line 16 is personal interest. Personal interest isn't deductible.

Publication 936 (2023) 13
If you did use all or part of any mortgage 

proceeds for business, investment, or other deductible activities, the part of the interest on 

line 16 that is allocable to those activities can 

be deducted as business, investment, or other 

deductible expense, subject to any limits that 

apply. Table 2 shows where to deduct that interest. See Allocation of Interest in Temporary 

Regulations section 1.163-8T.

The following two rules describe how to allocate the interest on line 16 to a business or investment activity.

• If you used all of the proceeds of the mortgages on line 12 for one activity, then all 

the interest on line 16 is allocated to that 

activity. In this case, deduct the interest on 

the form or schedule to which it applies.

• If you used the proceeds of the mortgages 

on line 12 for more than one activity, then 

you can allocate the interest on line 16 

among the activities in any manner you select (up to the total amount of interest otherwise allocable to each activity, explained 

next).

You figure the total amount of interest otherwise allocable to each activity by multiplying the 

amount on line 13 by the following fraction.

Amount on line 12

allocated to that activity

Total amount on line 12

Example. You had two mortgages (A and 

B) on your main home during the entire year. 

Mortgage A had an average balance of 

$90,000, and mortgage B had an average balance of $110,000.

You determine that the proceeds of mortgage A are allocable to personal expenses for 

the entire year. The proceeds of mortgage B are 

allocable to your business for the entire year. 

You paid $14,000 of interest on mortgage A and 

$16,000 of interest on mortgage B. You figure 

the amount of home mortgage interest you can 

deduct by using Table 1. You determine that 

$15,000 of the interest can be deducted as 

home mortgage interest.

The interest you can allocate to your business is the smaller of:

1. The amount on Table 1, line 16, of the 

worksheet ($15,000); or

2. The total amount of interest allocable to 

the business ($16,500), figured by multiplying the amount on line 13 (the $30,000 

total interest paid) by the following fraction.

$110,000 (the average balance

of the mortgage allocated

to the business)

$200,000 (the total average

balance of all mortgages)

Because $15,000 is the smaller of items 1 

and 2, that is the amount of interest you can allocate to your business. You deduct this amount 

on your Schedule C (Form 1040).

How To Get Tax Help

If you have questions about a tax issue; need 

help preparing your tax return; or want to download free publications, forms, or instructions, go 

to IRS.gov to find resources that can help you 

right away.

Preparing and filing your tax return. After 

receiving all your wage and earnings statements (Forms W-2, W-2G, 1099-R, 1099-MISC, 

1099-NEC, etc.); unemployment compensation 

statements (by mail or in a digital format) or 

other government payment statements (Form 

1099-G); and interest, dividend, and retirement 

statements from banks and investment firms 

(Forms 1099), you have several options to 

choose from to prepare and file your tax return. 

You can prepare the tax return yourself, see if 

you qualify for free tax preparation, or hire a tax 

professional to prepare your return.

Free options for tax preparation. Your options for preparing and filing your return online 

or in your local community, if you qualify, include 

the following.

• Free File. This program lets you prepare 

and file your federal individual income tax 

return for free using software or Free File 

Fillable Forms. However, state tax preparation may not be available through Free File. 

Go to IRS.gov/FreeFile to see if you qualify 

for free online federal tax preparation, e-filing, and direct deposit or payment options.

• VITA. The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program offers free tax help to 

people with low-to-moderate incomes, persons with disabilities, and limited-English-speaking taxpayers who need help 

preparing their own tax returns. Go to 

IRS.gov/VITA, download the free IRS2Go 

app, or call 800-906-9887 for information 

on free tax return preparation.

• TCE. The Tax Counseling for the Elderly 

(TCE) program offers free tax help for all 

taxpayers, particularly those who are 60 

years of age and older. TCE volunteers 

specialize in answering questions about 

pensions and retirement-related issues 

unique to seniors. Go to IRS.gov/TCE or 

download the free IRS2Go app for information on free tax return preparation.

• MilTax. Members of the U.S. Armed 

Forces and qualified veterans may use MilTax, a free tax service offered by the Department of Defense through Military OneSource. For more information, go to 

Table 2. Where To Deduct Your Interest Expense

IF you have ... THEN deduct it on ... AND for more information, go to ...

deductible student loan interest Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 21 Pub. 970, Tax Benefits for Education.

deductible home mortgage interest 

and points reported on Form 1098

Schedule A (Form 1040), line 8a this publication (936).

deductible home mortgage interest 

not reported on Form 1098

Schedule A (Form 1040), line 8b this publication (936).

deductible points not reported on 

Form 1098

Schedule A (Form 1040), line 8c this publication (936).

deductible investment interest (other 

than incurred to produce rents or 

royalties)

Schedule A (Form 1040), line 9 Pub. 550, Investment Income and 

Expenses.

deductible business interest 

(non-farm)

Schedule C (Form 1040)

deductible farm business interest Schedule F (Form 1040) Pub. 225, Farmer's Tax Guide.

deductible interest incurred to 

produce rents or royalties

Schedule E (Form 1040) Pub. 527, Residential Rental Property.

personal interest not deductible.

14 Publication 936 (2023)
MilitaryOneSource (MilitaryOneSource.mil/

MilTax).

Also, the IRS offers Free Fillable Forms, 

which can be completed online and then 

e-filed regardless of income.

Using online tools to help prepare your return. Go to IRS.gov/Tools for the following.

• The Earned Income Tax Credit Assistant 

(IRS.gov/EITCAssistant) determines if 

you’re eligible for the earned income credit 

(EIC).

• The Online EIN Application (IRS.gov/EIN) 

helps you get an employer identification 

number (EIN) at no cost.

• The Tax Withholding Estimator (IRS.gov/

W4App) makes it easier for you to estimate 

the federal income tax you want your employer to withhold from your paycheck. 

This is tax withholding. See how your withholding affects your refund, take-home pay, 

or tax due.

• The First-Time Homebuyer Credit Account 

Look-up (IRS.gov/HomeBuyer) tool provides information on your repayments and 

account balance.

• The Sales Tax Deduction Calculator 

(IRS.gov/SalesTax) figures the amount you 

can claim if you itemize deductions on 

Schedule A (Form 1040).

Getting answers to your tax questions. On IRS.gov, you can get 

up-to-date information on current 

events and changes in tax law.

• IRS.gov/Help: A variety of tools to help you 

get answers to some of the most common 

tax questions.

• IRS.gov/ITA: The Interactive Tax Assistant, 

a tool that will ask you questions and, 

based on your input, provide answers on a 

number of tax topics.

• IRS.gov/Forms: Find forms, instructions, 

and publications. You will find details on 

the most recent tax changes and interactive links to help you find answers to your 

questions.

• You may also be able to access tax information in your e-filing software.

Need someone to prepare your tax return? 

There are various types of tax return preparers, 

including enrolled agents, certified public accountants (CPAs), accountants, and many others who don’t have professional credentials. If 

you choose to have someone prepare your tax 

return, choose that preparer wisely. A paid tax 

preparer is:

• Primarily responsible for the overall substantive accuracy of your return,

• Required to sign the return, and

• Required to include their preparer tax identification number (PTIN).

Although the tax preparer always signs 

the return, you're ultimately responsible 

for providing all the information required for the preparer to accurately prepare 

your return and for the accuracy of every item 

reported on the return. Anyone paid to prepare 

tax returns for others should have a thorough 

CAUTION

!

understanding of tax matters. For more information on how to choose a tax preparer, go to Tips 

for Choosing a Tax Preparer on IRS.gov.

Employers can register to use Business 

Services Online. The Social Security Administration (SSA) offers online service at SSA.gov/

employer for fast, free, and secure W-2 filing options to CPAs, accountants, enrolled agents, 

and individuals who process Form W-2, Wage 

and Tax Statement, and Form W-2c, Corrected 

Wage and Tax Statement.

IRS social media. Go to IRS.gov/SocialMedia 

to see the various social media tools the IRS 

uses to share the latest information on tax 

changes, scam alerts, initiatives, products, and 

services. At the IRS, privacy and security are 

our highest priority. We use these tools to share 

public information with you. Don’t post your social security number (SSN) or other confidential 

information on social media sites. Always protect your identity when using any social networking site.

The following IRS YouTube channels provide 

short, informative videos on various tax-related 

topics in English, Spanish, and ASL.

• Youtube.com/irsvideos.

• Youtube.com/irsvideosmultilingua.

• Youtube.com/irsvideosASL.

Watching IRS videos. The IRS Video portal 

(IRSVideos.gov) contains video and audio presentations for individuals, small businesses, 

and tax professionals.

Online tax information in other languages. 

You can find information on IRS.gov/

MyLanguage if English isn’t your native language.

Free Over-the-Phone Interpreter (OPI) Service. The IRS is committed to serving taxpayers 

with limited-English proficiency (LEP) by offering OPI services. The OPI Service is a federally 

funded program and is available at Taxpayer 

Assistance Centers (TACs), most IRS offices, 

and every VITA/TCE tax return site. The OPI 

Service is accessible in more than 350 languages.

Accessibility Helpline available for taxpayers with disabilities. Taxpayers who need information about accessibility services can call 

833-690-0598. The Accessibility Helpline can 

answer questions related to current and future 

accessibility products and services available in 

alternative media formats (for example, braille, 

large print, audio, etc.). The Accessibility Helpline does not have access to your IRS account. 

For help with tax law, refunds, or account-related issues, go to IRS.gov/LetUsHelp.

Note. Form 9000, Alternative Media Preference, or Form 9000(SP) allows you to elect to 

receive certain types of written correspondence 

in the following formats.

• Standard Print.

• Large Print.

• Braille.

• Audio (MP3).

• Plain Text File (TXT).

• Braille Ready File (BRF).

Disasters. Go to IRS.gov/DisasterRelief to review the available disaster tax relief.

Getting tax forms and publications. Go to 

IRS.gov/Forms to view, download, or print all 

the forms, instructions, and publications you 

may need. Or, you can go to IRS.gov/

OrderForms to place an order.

Getting tax publications and instructions in 

eBook format. Download and view most tax 

publications and instructions (including the Instructions for Form 1040) on mobile devices as 

eBooks at IRS.gov/eBooks.

IRS eBooks have been tested using Apple's 

iBooks for iPad. Our eBooks haven’t been tested on other dedicated eBook readers, and 

eBook functionality may not operate as intended.

Access your online account (individual taxpayers only). Go to IRS.gov/Account to securely access information about your federal tax 

account.

• View the amount you owe and a breakdown by tax year.

• See payment plan details or apply for a 

new payment plan.

• Make a payment or view 5 years of payment history and any pending or scheduled payments.

• Access your tax records, including key 

data from your most recent tax return, and 

transcripts.

• View digital copies of select notices from 

the IRS.

• Approve or reject authorization requests 

from tax professionals.

• View your address on file or manage your 

communication preferences.

Get a transcript of your return. With an online account, you can access a variety of information to help you during the filing season. You 

can get a transcript, review your most recently 

filed tax return, and get your adjusted gross income. Create or access your online account at 

IRS.gov/Account.

Tax Pro Account. This tool lets your tax professional submit an authorization request to access your individual taxpayer IRS online account. For more information, go to IRS.gov/

TaxProAccount.

Using direct deposit. The safest and easiest 

way to receive a tax refund is to e-file and 

choose direct deposit, which securely and electronically transfers your refund directly into your 

financial account. Direct deposit also avoids the 

possibility that your check could be lost, stolen, 

destroyed, or returned undeliverable to the IRS. 

Publication 936 (2023) 15
Eight in 10 taxpayers use direct deposit to receive their refunds. If you don’t have a bank account, go to IRS.gov/DirectDeposit for more information on where to find a bank or credit 

union that can open an account online.

Reporting and resolving your tax-related 

identity theft issues. 

• Tax-related identity theft happens when 

someone steals your personal information 

to commit tax fraud. Your taxes can be affected if your SSN is used to file a fraudulent return or to claim a refund or credit.

• The IRS doesn’t initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages (including 

shortened links), telephone calls, or social 

media channels to request or verify personal or financial information. This includes 

requests for personal identification numbers (PINs), passwords, or similar information for credit cards, banks, or other financial accounts.

• Go to IRS.gov/IdentityTheft, the IRS Identity Theft Central webpage, for information 

on identity theft and data security protection for taxpayers, tax professionals, and 

businesses. If your SSN has been lost or 

stolen or you suspect you’re a victim of 

tax-related identity theft, you can learn 

what steps you should take.

• Get an Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN). IP 

PINs are six-digit numbers assigned to taxpayers to help prevent the misuse of their 

SSNs on fraudulent federal income tax returns. When you have an IP PIN, it prevents someone else from filing a tax return 

with your SSN. To learn more, go to 

IRS.gov/IPPIN.

Ways to check on the status of your refund. 

• Go to IRS.gov/Refunds.

• Download the official IRS2Go app to your 

mobile device to check your refund status.

• Call the automated refund hotline at 

800-829-1954.

The IRS can’t issue refunds before 

mid-February for returns that claimed 

the EIC or the additional child tax credit 

(ACTC). This applies to the entire refund, not 

just the portion associated with these credits.

Making a tax payment. Payments of U.S. tax 

must be remitted to the IRS in U.S. dollars. 

Digital assets are not accepted. Go to IRS.gov/

Payments for information on how to make a payment using any of the following options.

• IRS Direct Pay: Pay your individual tax bill 

or estimated tax payment directly from your 

checking or savings account at no cost to 

you.

• Debit Card, Credit Card, or Digital Wallet: 

Choose an approved payment processor 

to pay online or by phone.

• Electronic Funds Withdrawal: Schedule a 

payment when filing your federal taxes using tax return preparation software or 

through a tax professional.

• Electronic Federal Tax Payment System: 

Best option for businesses. Enrollment is 

required.

• Check or Money Order: Mail your payment 

to the address listed on the notice or instructions.

CAUTION

!

• Cash: You may be able to pay your taxes 

with cash at a participating retail store.

• Same-Day Wire: You may be able to do 

same-day wire from your financial institution. Contact your financial institution for 

availability, cost, and time frames.

Note. The IRS uses the latest encryption 

technology to ensure that the electronic payments you make online, by phone, or from a 

mobile device using the IRS2Go app are safe 

and secure. Paying electronically is quick, easy, 

and faster than mailing in a check or money order.

What if I can’t pay now? Go to IRS.gov/

Payments for more information about your options.

• Apply for an online payment agreement 

(IRS.gov/OPA) to meet your tax obligation 

in monthly installments if you can’t pay 

your taxes in full today. Once you complete 

the online process, you will receive immediate notification of whether your agreement has been approved.

• Use the Offer in Compromise Pre-Qualifier 

to see if you can settle your tax debt for 

less than the full amount you owe. For 

more information on the Offer in Compromise program, go to IRS.gov/OIC.

Filing an amended return. Go to IRS.gov/

Form1040X for information and updates.

Checking the status of your amended return. Go to IRS.gov/WMAR to track the status 

of Form 1040-X amended returns.

It can take up to 3 weeks from the date 

you filed your amended return for it to 

show up in our system, and processing 

it can take up to 16 weeks.

Understanding an IRS notice or letter 

you’ve received. Go to IRS.gov/Notices to find 

additional information about responding to an 

IRS notice or letter.

Responding to an IRS notice or letter. You 

can now upload responses to all notices and 

letters using the Document Upload Tool. For notices that require additional action, taxpayers 

will be redirected appropriately on IRS.gov to 

take further action. To learn more about the tool, 

go to IRS.gov/Upload.

Note. You can use Schedule LEP (Form 

1040), Request for Change in Language Preference, to state a preference to receive notices, 

letters, or other written communications from 

the IRS in an alternative language. You may not 

immediately receive written communications in 

the requested language. The IRS’s commitment 

to LEP taxpayers is part of a multi-year timeline 

that began providing translations in 2023. You 

will continue to receive communications, including notices and letters, in English until they are 

translated to your preferred language.

Contacting your local TAC. Keep in mind, 

many questions can be answered on IRS.gov 

without visiting a TAC. Go to IRS.gov/LetUsHelp 

for the topics people ask about most. If you still 

need help, TACs provide tax help when a tax isCAUTION

!

sue can’t be handled online or by phone. All 

TACs now provide service by appointment, so 

you’ll know in advance that you can get the 

service you need without long wait times. Before you visit, go to IRS.gov/TACLocator to find 

the nearest TAC and to check hours, available 

services, and appointment options. Or, on the 

IRS2Go app, under the Stay Connected tab, 

choose the Contact Us option and click on “Local Offices.”

The Taxpayer Advocate 

Service (TAS) Is Here To 

Help You

What Is TAS?

TAS is an independent organization within the 

IRS that helps taxpayers and protects taxpayer 

rights. TAS strives to ensure that every taxpayer 

is treated fairly and that you know and understand your rights under the Taxpayer Bill of 

Rights.

How Can You Learn About Your 

Taxpayer Rights?

The Taxpayer Bill of Rights describes 10 basic 

rights that all taxpayers have when dealing with 

the IRS. Go to TaxpayerAdvocate.IRS.gov to 

help you understand what these rights mean to 

you and how they apply. These are your rights. 

Know them. Use them.

What Can TAS Do for You?

TAS can help you resolve problems that you 

can’t resolve with the IRS. And their service is 

free. If you qualify for their assistance, you will 

be assigned to one advocate who will work with 

you throughout the process and will do everything possible to resolve your issue. TAS can 

help you if:

• Your problem is causing financial difficulty 

for you, your family, or your business;

• You face (or your business is facing) an immediate threat of adverse action; or

• You’ve tried repeatedly to contact the IRS 

but no one has responded, or the IRS 

hasn’t responded by the date promised.

How Can You Reach TAS?

TAS has offices in every state, the District of 

Columbia, and Puerto Rico. To find your advocate’s number:

• Go to TaxpayerAdvocate.IRS.gov/ContactUs;

• Download Pub. 1546, The Taxpayer Advocate Service Is Your Voice at the IRS, available at IRS.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1546.pdf;

• Call the IRS toll free at 800-TAX-FORM 

(800-829-3676) to order a copy of Pub. 

1546;

• Check your local directory; or

• Call TAS toll free at 877-777-4778.

How Else Does TAS Help 

Taxpayers?

TAS works to resolve large-scale problems that 

affect many taxpayers. If you know of one of 

16 Publication 936 (2023)
these broad issues, report it to TAS at IRS.gov/

SAMS. Be sure to not include any personal taxpayer information.

Low Income Taxpayer Clinics 

(LITCs)

LITCs are independent from the IRS and TAS. 

LITCs represent individuals whose income is 

below a certain level and who need to resolve 

tax problems with the IRS. LITCs can represent 

taxpayers in audits, appeals, and tax collection 

disputes before the IRS and in court. In addition, LITCs can provide information about taxpayer rights and responsibilities in different languages for individuals who speak English as a 

second language. Services are offered for free 

or a small fee. For more information or to find an 

LITC near you, go to the LITC page at 

TaxpayerAdvocate.IRS.gov/LITC or see IRS 

Pub. 4134, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic List, at 

IRS.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p4134.pdf.

To help us develop a more useful index, please let us know if you have ideas for index entries.

See “Comments and Suggestions” in the “Introduction” for the ways you can reach us. Index

A

Acquisition debt 2, 9, 10

Alimony 5

Amortization:

Points 5

Appraisal fees 7

Armed forces:

Housing allowance 5

Assistance (See Tax help)

Average mortgage balance 12

B

Borrowers:

More than one 8

Seller-paid points, treatment by 

buyer 7

Business:

Average mortgage balance, total 

amount of interest otherwise 

allowable to each activity 13

Mortgage proceeds used for 8

C

Clergy:

Ministers' and military housing 

allowance 5

Cooperative housing 4, 8, 9

Cost of home or 

improvements 10

Credits 5

D

Date of mortgage 10

Debt

Choice to treat as not secured by 

home 4

Grandfathered 2, 10

Home acquisition 2, 9

Not secured by home 3

Secured 3

Deductions 2

Home office 4

Points 5, 13

Deed preparation costs 7

Divorced taxpayers 5, 10

F

Fees:

Appraisal 7

Notaries 7

Points (See Points)

Figures (See Tables and figures)

Form 1040, Schedule A 8, 14

Form 1040, Schedule C or 

C-EZ 14

Form 1040, Schedule E 14

Form 1040, Schedule F 14

Form 1098 8

Form 8396 5

G

Grandfathered debt 2, 10

Ground rents 5

H

Home 2

Acquisition debt 2, 9

Construction 4

Cost of 10

Destroyed 4

Divided use 4, 10

Grandfathered debt 2, 10

Improvement loan, points 7

Main 4

Office in 4

Qualified 4

Renting out part of 4

Sale of 4

Second 4

Time-sharing arrangements 4

Housing allowance:

Ministers and military 5

I

Improvements:

Cost of 10

Home acquisition debt 9

Points 7

Substantial 10

Interest 2

(See also Mortgage interest)

Interest rate method 12

Refunded 5, 8

Where to deduct 14

Investments:

Average mortgage balance and 

total amount of interest 

allowable 13

Mortgage proceeds used for 5, 

8

J

Joint returns 4

L

Lender mortgage statements 12

Limits:

Cooperative housing, mortgage 

interest deduction 9

Deductibility of points 8

Home acquisition debt 9

Home mortgage interest 

deduction 9

Qualified loan limit 11, 12

Line 10 8

Loans 8, 9

(See also Mortgages)

Home improvement, points 7

Qualified loan limit 11

M

Main home 4

Married taxpayers 4

Military housing allowance 5

Ministers' housing allowance 5

Missing children, photographs 

of 1

Mixed-use mortgages 12

Mortgage interest 2

Cooperative housing 9

Credit 5

Fully deductible interest 2

Home mortgage interest 2

How to report 8

Late payment charges 4

Limits on deduction 9

Ministers' and military housing 

allowance 5

Prepaid interest 5, 8

Prepayment penalty 4

Refunds 5, 8

Sale of home 4

Special situations 4

Statement 8

Where to deduct 14

Worksheet to figure (Table 1) 11

Mortgage Interest Statement 8

Mortgages:

Assistance payments (under sec. 

235 of National Housing 

Act) 5

Average balance 12

Date of 10

Ending early 8

Late qualifying 9

Mixed-use 12

Preparation costs for note or 

deed of trust 7

Proceeds invested in tax-exempt 

securities 5

Proceeds used for business 8

Proceeds used for investment 8

Qualified loan limit 11, 12

Refinanced 7, 9, 10

Reverse 5

Statements provided by 

lender 12

To buy, build, or improve 9

Wraparound 3

N

Nonredeemable ground rents 5

Notary fees 7

O

Office in home 4

P

Penalties:

Mortgage prepayment 4

Points 5-8

Claiming deductible 13

Exception to general rule 7

Excess 7

Funds provided less than 7

General rule 5

Home improvement loans 7

Seller paid 7

Prepaid interest 5, 8

Prepayment penalties 4

Publications (See Tax help)

Q

Qualified homes 4

Qualified loan limit:

Average mortgage balance 12

Worksheet to figure (Table 1) 11

R

Redeemable ground rents 5

Refinancing 7

Grandfathered debt 10

Home acquisition debt 9

Refunds 5, 8

Rent:

Nonredeemable ground rents 5

Redeemable ground rents 5

Rental payments 5

Renting of home:

Part of 4

Time-sharing arrangements 4

Repairs 10

Reverse Mortgages 5

S

Sale of home 4

Second home 4, 7

Secured debt 3

Seller-paid points 7

Separate returns 4

Separated taxpayers 5

Share of Interest 9

Spouses 4

Statements provided by 

lender 12

Stock:

Cooperative housing 9

Publication 936 (2023) 17
T

Tables and figures:

Deductible home mortgage 

interest:

Fully deductible, 

determination of (Figure 

A) 2

How to figure (Table 1) 11

Mortgage to buy, build, or 

improve home (Figure C) 9

Points (Figure B) 5

Qualified loan limit worksheet 

(Table 1) 11

Tax credits 5

Tax help 14

Tax-exempt securities:

Mortgage proceeds invested 

in 5

Time-sharing arrangements 4

W

Worksheets:

Deductible home mortgage 

interest 11

Qualified loan limit 11

Wraparound mortgages 3

18 Publication 936 (2023)