Updated October 18, 2026. Quick answer: Line 8b is for home mortgage interest you paid to someone who did not give you a Form 1098. Line 8c is for points that were not reported on a Form 1098, and line 8d is reserved. Line 8e adds lines 8a through 8c. The instructions add naming rules for seller-financed loans and loans reported on another borrower’s form.
IRS worksheets read line by line: Home Mortgage Interest Limit Worksheet.
What lines 8b and 8c ask for
The caption for line 8b reads “Home mortgage interest not reported to you on Form 1098. See” the instructions. The instruction itself is “If you paid home mortgage interest to a recipient who didn’t provide you a Form 1098, report your deductible mortgage interest on line 8b.” The instructions also warn “deductible mortgage interest may be less than what you paid if one or more of the limits on home mortgage interest apply to you.” Those limits are set out on the Schedule A line 8a page, and the lender statement is explained on the Form 1098 page.
The caption for line 8c reads “Points not reported to you on Form 1098. See instructions for special rules”. The instructions say “Points are shown on your settlement statement.” Line 8d is described as “Reserved for future use”.
Naming the recipient on line 8b
For a seller-financed loan, the instructions say “If you paid home mortgage interest to the person from whom you bought the home and that person didn’t provide you a Form 1098, write that person’s name, identifying number, and address on the dotted lines next to line 8b.” They explain the number: “If the recipient of your home mortgage payment(s) is an individual, the identifying number is their social security number (SSN). Otherwise, it is the employer identification number (EIN).” They add a consequence: “If you don’t show the required information about the recipient or let the recipient know your SSN, you may have to pay a $50 penalty.”
When the interest was reported on another borrower’s form: “identify the name and address of the person or persons who received a Form 1098 reporting the interest you paid.” For a paper return the instructions say “identify the person by attaching a statement to your paper return and printing” See attached to the right of line 8b.
How points are treated on line 8c
The instructions say “Points you paid only to borrow money are generally deductible over the life of the loan. See Pub. 936 to figure the amount you can deduct.” They also say “Points paid for other purposes, such as for a lender’s services, aren’t deductible.”
For a refinance, the instructions say “Generally, you must deduct points you paid to refinance a mortgage over the life of the loan.” If you improved your main home with part of the proceeds, “you may be able to deduct the part of the points related to the improvement in the year paid.” The points a lender reports on Form 1098 are covered on the Form 1098 box 6 page.
Where the number comes from
Lines 8b and 8c come from your own payment records and settlement statement, not from a Form 1098. Line 8e is the sum. The form’s caption for line 8e is “Add lines 8a through 8c”. So the total combines the reported amount from the Schedule A line 8a page with the unreported interest and points on 8b and 8c.
Where it goes next
Line 8e is carried to line 10: the form reads “Add lines 8e and 9”. See Schedule A lines 9 and 10 for that step. The overall form is explained on the Schedule A (Form 1040) page, and the deduction total is on the Schedule A lines 17 and 18 page.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads the 2025 Schedule A (Form 1040) and its 2025 instructions, the current files irs.gov served on 2026-10-18. They are the files for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The schedule says “Attach to Form 1040 or 1040-SR.” 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
- Leaving out points because no Form 1098 showed them. The caption for line 8c is “Points not reported to you on Form 1098.”
- Skipping the recipient details on a seller-financed loan. The instructions say to “write that person’s name, identifying number, and address on the dotted lines next to line 8b.”
- Deducting every point at once. The instructions say points paid only to borrow money “are generally deductible over the life of the loan.”
Related: Schedule A (Form 1040), Form 1098 box 6, and Form 1098.
Sources
- Instructions for Schedule A (Form 1040), Itemized Deductions (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040sca.pdf
- Schedule A (Form 1040), Itemized Deductions (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040sa.pdf
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 18, 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.