Updated October 17, 2026. Quick answer: Line 1c of Form 1040 is for tip income that was not reported on line 1a. That covers tips you did not report to your employer, allocated tips shown in box 8 of your W-2 in most cases, and the value of noncash tips. The numbers come from your own tip records and from box 8 of your W-2s.
More IRS forms and schedules for individual filers, read line by line: Form 4137 instructions.
Schedule 2 (Form 1040) for 2025, read line by line: Schedule 2 lines 5 to 7.
What line 1c asks for
The form’s caption for the line reads “Tip income not reported on line 1a (see instructions)”. The instructions state the entry rule: “Enter the total of your tip income that was not reported on Form 1040, line 1a.” Tips your employer already included in box 1 of your W-2 are part of line 1a, so they are not entered a second time here.
What the total should include
The instructions list what belongs in the line 1c total: “This should include any tip income you didn’t report to your employer and any allocated tips shown in box 8 on your Form(s) W-2 unless you can prove that your unreported tips are less than the amount in box 8.”
Allocated tips have their own rule, stated right after: “Allocated tips aren’t included as income in box 1.” That is why box 8 does not flow into line 1a and is picked up here instead. For more detail the instructions say “See Pub. 531 for more details.” For how tips are reported in the other tip boxes of the W-2 and on 1099 forms, see the 1099-NEC box 1b to 1d page.
Noncash tips
Not every tip is cash. The instructions add: “Also, include the value of any noncash tips you received, such as tickets, passes, or other items of value.” And they close the loophole of never telling your employer: “Although you don’t report these noncash tips to your employer, you must report them on line 1c.”
Where the number comes from
Two places feed the line. One is box 8 of your Form(s) W-2, if an employer allocated tips to you. The other is your own tip record, covering tips you did not report to your employer and the value of noncash tips. Add them together into one line 1c total, subject to the exception for box 8 that the instructions quote above.
A labelled illustration, not an IRS example: if you kept a record of $1,200 in tips you never reported to your employer and noncash tips worth $300, the line 1c total is $1,200 plus $300, which is $1,500. The figures are made up to show the arithmetic only.
Social security and Medicare tax on unreported tips
The instructions add a caution: “You may owe social security and Medicare or railroad retirement (RRTA) tax on unreported tips.” “See the instructions for Schedule 2, line 5.” That tax is figured elsewhere, and line 1c itself only reports the tip income. Sibling lines in the same block are line 1b and line 1d.
Where it goes next
On the form, the lines at the top of the income section feed one total. The form’s own caption for it reads “Add lines 1a through 1h”. That total is line 1z, and line 1c is one of the amounts added into it.
Line 1z then carries into the next step of the income section. The form’s caption for line 9 reads “Add lines 1z, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, 6b, 7a, and 8. This is your total income”. So whatever you enter on line 1c moves your total income, and the surrounding lines are explained in Form 1040 line by line.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads the 2025 Form 1040 and its 2025 instructions, the current files irs.gov served on 2026-10-17. They are the forms for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The instructions say “The lines on Forms 1040 and 1040-SR are the same.” so everything here applies to Form 1040 and to Form 1040-SR alike. Check the tax year printed on the form you are filling in and use the line numbers on that year’s form, because a different year’s form can number or word its lines differently.
Common mistakes
- Counting tips twice. The line is for tip income “that was not reported on Form 1040, line 1a”, so tips already inside your W-2 box 1 stay on line 1a.
- Ignoring box 8. The instructions say the total should include “any allocated tips shown in box 8 on your Form(s) W-2” unless you can prove your unreported tips are less than the amount in box 8.
- Leaving out noncash tips. The instructions say “you must report them on line 1c”, even though you did not report them to your employer.
Related: 1099-NEC boxes 1b to 1d: cash tips and overtime, Form 1040, Schedule 1 (Form 1040), and W-2 box 12 codes.
Sources
- Instructions for Form 1040 and Form 1040-SR (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf
- Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040.pdf
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 17, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.