Form 8609: Low-Income Housing Credit (IRS)

Form 8609 is the form for the low-income housing credit on residential rental buildings. It has two parts. A housing credit agency completes Part I to record the allocation of credit. The building owner completes Part II to certify the first year of the credit period.

This post is general information from the IRS form and its instructions. It does not say whether a building qualifies, and it does not give tax advice for an owner.

Who uses the form

The instructions say owners of residential low-income rental buildings use Form 8609. The housing credit agency that allocates the credit issues the form. A separate Form 8609 is issued for each building.

Part I: the allocation

Part I records the allocation. The agency enters the address and building identification number (BIN), the owner's name and taxpayer identification number, and the date of the allocation. It also enters the maximum housing credit dollar amount, the maximum applicable credit percentage, and the maximum qualified basis.

Part I also asks whether the building is in a high-cost area, whether any basis is financed by tax-exempt bonds, the date the building was placed in service, and the type of allocation. The agency signs the allocation as complying with section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code.

Part II: the first-year certification

The owner completes Part II for the first year of the credit period. Part II asks for the eligible basis of the building, the original qualified basis at the close of the first year, and the first year of the credit period. It also asks for elections, such as the election to begin the credit period the year after the building is placed in service.

The form says some elections are irrevocable once made. Read the instructions before you choose.

The 10-year credit period

The credit is claimed each year over a 10-year credit period. The form asks for the first year of that period. The owner must keep the building in compliance for the full compliance period.

Annual compliance: Form 8609-A

The instructions say to file Form 8609-A for each year of the 15-year compliance period. Form 8609-A is a separate form, and it reports the building's compliance each year. Keep copies of each Form 8609-A with your records.

Records to keep

A copy of each Form 8609, including the signed Part I from the agency.
The building's placed-in-service date and eligible basis.
Each Form 8609-A filed for the compliance period.
Any election statement that was filed with the first-year certification.

Form 8609 is one of several business credit forms. For the general business credit, see Form 3800: How Business Credits Are Combined.

Why the agency signature matters

The housing credit agency signs Part I to state that the allocation follows section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code. Keep the signed copy with the building records, because the form is the record of the allocation.

How the forms work together

Form 8609 is completed once for the first year. Later years are reported on Form 8609-A, as described above. Check the instructions before any change in ownership of the building, because the rules for later forms depend on the facts of that change.

Recordkeeping in practice

A building owner should keep a single file for each building. The file should hold the allocation, the first-year certification, each annual Form 8609-A, and the election statements. A complete file makes each later year easier to support.

Questions to settle before filing

Confirm that the allocation date, the placed-in-service date, and the first year of the credit period match your building records. A mismatch between these dates is easy to miss, so check them before the owner signs Part II.

Sources: Sources: IRS, Form 8609, Low-Income Housing Credit Allocation and Certification (Rev. December 2021) (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8609.pdf); Instructions for Form 8609 (Rev. December 2025) (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i8609.pdf) This is general information, not advice about your specific return.

More guides on: Tax credits and deductions

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