Form 8829: Business Use of Home (IRS)

Form 8829 figures the amount you can deduct for business use of your home. The result goes to Schedule C (Form 1040), Profit or Loss From Business. You use it for a home office. You also use it for another part of your home that you use for business.

This post is general information from the 2025 Form 8829 and its instructions. It does not say whether a home office is deductible for you.

The main test

The instructions say you can deduct expenses for a part of your home only in certain cases. That part must be used exclusively, and on a regular basis, for one of these purposes:

As your principal place of business for a trade or business.
As a place where patients, clients, or customers meet or deal with you in the normal course of business.
In connection with your business, if it is a separate structure that is not attached to your home.

The instructions also describe two exceptions to the exclusive use rule. Space used on a regular basis to store inventory or product samples can qualify. Certain daycare facilities can qualify too.

Principal place of business

To decide if your home office is your principal place of business, the instructions say to compare two things. The first is the importance of the activities at each place. The second is the time you spend at each place.

A home office can qualify if you use it exclusively and regularly for administrative or management work. You also must have no other fixed location where you do that work in a substantial way. Billing customers, keeping books, ordering supplies, and setting up appointments are examples of that work.

Other people can do some of that work somewhere else. The instructions say that does not disqualify your home office.

Daycare use

If you run a daycare business from your home, the instructions describe a special computation. Areas used only for business are compared with the total area of the home. Direct expenses for the business area are handled separately from indirect expenses for the whole home.

If you used the home for business for only part of the year, you can deduct only the expenses for that part. The instructions refer to the Schedule C instructions and Publication 587 for part-year rules.

Separate forms for each home

Use a separate Form 8829 for each home you used for business during the year. Two homes need two forms.

Limits and carryovers

Your deduction can be limited. The instructions say it can be limited to the gross income from the business use of your home. Expenses above the limit carry over to the next year. Part IV figures the carryover, which goes to the 2026 Form 8829.

The 2025 instructions also state a limit on state and local taxes. The overall limit is $40,000, or $20,000 if married filing separately. The limit is reduced when modified adjusted gross income is above $500,000. It is not reduced below $10,000, or $5,000 if married filing separately. The instructions say these rules affect the real estate tax part of the calculation.

Simplified method

Some filers can use the simplified method for the home office deduction. The Form 8829 instructions point to the Schedule C instructions and Publication 587 for that method.

The full worksheet

For the full worksheet and more detail, see Publication 587, Business Use of Your Home. The instructions cite it in several places.

For the self-employed deduction rules, see Home Office Deduction for the Self-Employed: Who Qualifies and How Is It Figured?. For how long to keep the records that support the deduction, see How Long Should I Keep My Tax Records?.

Sources: Sources: IRS, Form 8829, Expenses for Business Use of Your Home (2025) (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8829.pdf); Instructions for Form 8829 (2025) (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i8829.pdf) This is general information, not advice about your specific return.

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