Updated October 17, 2026. Quick answer: Line 2a of Schedule 1 is for alimony or separate maintenance you received under an agreement dated on or before December 31, 2018, unless that agreement was later changed to say it is not income. Line 2b is the month and year of the original divorce or separation agreement. The payer’s records and your own bank records are where the total comes from.
Related reading on this site: IRS Publication 504.
What lines 2a and 2b ask for
The form’s caption for line 2a reads “Alimony received”. Below it, line 2b reads “Date of original divorce or separation agreement (see instructions)”. Both are in Part I of Schedule 1 (Form 1040).
Which alimony goes on line 2a
The instructions say “Enter amounts received as alimony or separate maintenance pursuant to a divorce or separation agreement entered into on or before December 31, 2018, unless that agreement was changed after December 31, 2018, to expressly provide that alimony received isn’t included in your income.” The other side of the rule is stated just as plainly: “Alimony received is not included in your income if you entered into a divorce or separation agreement after December 31, 2018.” So the date on your agreement, and any later change to it, decides whether line 2a is used at all.
Where the number comes from
Add up what you actually received during the year under the qualifying agreement. The instructions address more than one agreement: “If you are including alimony payments from more than one divorce or separation agreement in your income, enter the total of all alimony received on line 2a.”
The instructions also tell you what the payer will need from you: “If you are including alimony in your income, you must let the person who made the payments know your social security number.” The consequence they name is a penalty, and they refer you to Pub. 504 for more details.
Line 2b: the date of the agreement
The instructions say “On line 2b, enter the month and year of your original divorce or separation agreement that relates to the alimony payment, if any, reported on line 2a.” With more than one agreement they say “on line 2b enter the month and year of the divorce or separation agreement for which you received the most income.” The other agreements go on an attached statement: “Attach a statement listing the month and year of the other agreements.”
Where it goes next
Line 2a flows into the additional income total, because the line 10 caption starts with lines 1 through 7. The form’s caption for line 10 reads “Combine lines 1 through 7 and 9. This is your additional income. Enter here and on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 8”. The instructions say the same thing from the Form 1040 side: “The amount on line 10 of Schedule 1 is entered on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 8.” The totals are covered on the page for lines 9 and 10.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads the 2025 Schedule 1 and the 2025 Form 1040 instructions, the current files irs.gov served on 2026-10-17. They are for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The schedule itself says “Attach to Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR.” Check the tax year printed on the schedule you are filling in and use the line numbers on that year’s schedule, because a different year’s schedule can number or word its lines differently.
Common mistakes
- Entering alimony under a newer agreement. The instructions say “Alimony received is not included in your income if you entered into a divorce or separation agreement after December 31, 2018.”
- Leaving out a changed agreement. An older agreement drops out only if it “was changed after December 31, 2018, to expressly provide that alimony received isn’t included in your income”.
- Entering only one agreement’s alimony when there are several. The instructions say to “enter the total of all alimony received on line 2a”.
Related: Schedule 1 (Form 1040), Form 1040, and Form 1040-SR.
Sources
- Instructions for Form 1040 and Form 1040-SR (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf
- Schedule 1 (Form 1040), Additional Income and Adjustments to Income (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s1.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.