Updated October 17, 2026. Quick answer: Line 4 is the retirement savings contributions credit, also called the saver’s credit. It is for certain contributions to retirement accounts, and the amount is figured on Form 8880, which is attached to the return. The instructions list conditions that rule the credit out.
IRS worksheets read line by line: Schedule 8812 Credit Limit Worksheet A and Form 8880 Credit Limit Worksheet.
Business use of your home (Form 8829), the saver’s credit (Form 8880), clean vehicle credits (Form 8936) and amended returns (Form 1040-X), read line by line: Form 8880, Form 8880 lines 1 to 5 and Form 8880 line 12.
What line 4 asks for
The form’s caption reads “Retirement savings contributions credit. Attach Form 8880”. The instructions open with “You may be able to take this credit if you, or your spouse if filing jointly, made” the contributions they list. The credit is covered in more detail on the saver’s credit page.
Contributions the instructions list
The list includes “contributions, other than rollover contributions, to a traditional or Roth IRA”, and “elective deferrals to a 401(k) or 403(b) plan”. It also names “voluntary employee contributions to a qualified retirement plan” and “contributions to an ABLE account by the designated beneficiary, as defined in section 529A.” Read the full list in the Form 1040 instructions, because it has more items than these.
When you cannot take the credit
The instructions say “you can’t take the credit if either of the following applies.” One is the income test: “The amount on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 11b, is more than $39,500 ($59,250 if head of household; $79,000 if married filing jointly).” The other concerns the person who contributed. They cannot be someone who “was born after January 1, 2008”, who “is claimed as a dependent on someone else’s 2025 tax return”, or who “was a student (defined next).”
The student definition begins “You were a student if during any part of 5 calendar months of 2025, you:” and then lists full-time enrollment and a full-time on-farm training course. For more detail, the instructions say “use Tax Topic 610 or see Form 8880.”
Where the number comes from
The amount is figured on Form 8880 and carried to line 4. The form’s caption says “Attach Form 8880”.
Where it goes next
Line 4 is one of the lines added on line 8 of Part I. The form describes line 8 as “Add lines 1 through 4, 5a, 5b, and 7. Enter here and on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 20”. The instructions add “Include the amount on Schedule 3, line 8, in the amount entered on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 20.” See Schedule 3 lines 7 and 8 for that step and the Form 1040 lines 19, 20 and 21 page for the Form 1040 side. The return it attaches to is explained on the Form 1040 page.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads the 2025 Schedule 3 (Form 1040) and the 2025 Form 1040 instructions, the current files irs.gov served on 2026-10-17. They are the files for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The schedule says “Attach to Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR.” Schedule 3 has no instructions booklet of its own. Its line instructions are part of the Form 1040 instructions, under the heading “Instructions for Schedule 3”. 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
- Counting a rollover as a contribution. The instructions describe “contributions, other than rollover contributions, to a traditional or Roth IRA”.
- Overlooking the income test. The instructions say you cannot take the credit if “The amount on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 11b, is more than $39,500 ($59,250 if head of household; $79,000 if married filing jointly).”
- Overlooking the student rule. The instructions define it: “You were a student if during any part of 5 calendar months of 2025, you:”
Related: saver’s credit, Form 1040 lines 19, 20 and 21, and Form 1040.
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Answer againSources
- Instructions for Form 1040 and Form 1040-SR (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf
- Schedule 3 (Form 1040), Additional Credits and Payments (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040s3.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.