2022 Student Loan Interest Deduction
For 2022, the Student Loan Interest Deduction figures are $2,500 (Maximum deduction), $70,000 (Phase-out threshold, single filers), $145,000 (Phase-out threshold, joint filers) and 2 more figures below.
| Item | Single filers | Joint filers |
|---|---|---|
| Phase-out threshold | $70,000 | $145,000 |
| Fully phased out | $85,000 | $175,000 |
Effective 2022-01-01Source: Rev. Proc. 2021-45 (IRS)Verified 2026-09-02
Compared with 2021
| Item | 2021 | 2022 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum deduction | $2,500 | $2,500 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
| Phase-out threshold, single filers | $70,000 | $70,000 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
| Phase-out threshold, joint filers | $140,000 | $145,000 | +$5,000 (+3.6%) |
| Fully phased out, single filers | $85,000 | $85,000 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
| Fully phased out, joint filers | $170,000 | $175,000 | +$5,000 (+2.9%) |
Phase-out threshold
Fully phased out
$70,000$175,000
One dot per column of the table, on a scale running from the smallest of these amounts to the largest. The scale is logarithmic - each faint line is ten times the one before it, so that the amounts crowded at the low end stay far enough apart to read. The table states which dot is which.
Who it applies to
Taxpayers who pay interest on qualified education loans and wish to claim the student loan interest deduction under IRC § 221 for the 2022 tax year.
What changed this year, and why
For 2022, the student loan interest deduction allows up to $2,500 in deductible interest. The deduction phases out for single filers with modified adjusted gross income between $70,000 and $85,000, and for joint filers between $145,000 and $175,000.
Common questions
- What is the maximum student loan interest deduction for 2022?
- The maximum deduction is $2,500 for the 2022 tax year.
- At what income level does the deduction begin to phase out?
- For single filers, the phase-out begins when modified adjusted gross income exceeds $70,000. For joint filers, it begins above $145,000.
- At what income level is the deduction fully phased out?
- The deduction is completely phased out for single filers with modified adjusted gross income of $85,000 or more, and for joint filers at $175,000 or more.
How the deduction is reduced inside the phase-out range
If your modified adjusted gross income falls between the phase-out threshold and the fully phased-out amount, the IRS reduces your student loan interest deduction using a specific formula. You start with the interest you actually paid (capped at $2,500) and multiply it by a fraction. The top of that fraction is the amount your MAGI exceeds $70,000 for single filers or $145,000 for joint filers. The bottom of the fraction is $15,000 for single filers or $30,000 for joint filers - the width of the phase-out range. The result of that multiplication is the reduction amount, which you then subtract from your original deduction to determine what you may actually claim. For example, a single filer whose MAGI exceeds $70,000 by half the phase-out range will see the fraction equal one-half, cutting the deduction in half. Once MAGI reaches or exceeds the upper threshold - $85,000 for single filers or $175,000 for joint filers - the entire deduction is eliminated.
To figure the phaseout, multiply your interest deduction (before the phaseout, but not more than $2,500) by a fraction. The numerator (top part) is your MAGI minus $70,000 ($145,000 in the case of a joint re- turn). The denominator (bottom part) is $15,000 ($30,000 in the case of a joint return). Subtract the result from your deduction (before the phaseout) to give you the amount you can deduct.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
The income the phase-out is measured on
The phase-out of the student loan interest deduction is measured against modified adjusted gross income, or MAGI. For most taxpayers, MAGI is simply the adjusted gross income reported on the federal income tax return before subtracting any deduction for student loan interest itself. In other words, you add back the student loan interest deduction you are trying to claim. There are additional modifications as well: if you excluded foreign earned income, claimed a foreign housing exclusion or deduction, or excluded income from Puerto Rico, American Samoa, or Guam, those amounts must be added back to AGI as well. The resulting MAGI is then compared to the phase-out thresholds - $70,000 for single filers and $145,000 for joint filers - to determine whether the deduction is reduced or eliminated entirely.
For most taxpayers, MAGI is AGI as figured on their federal income tax return before subtracting any deduction for student loan interest.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Who can claim the deduction
To claim the student loan interest deduction, a taxpayer must satisfy four conditions, all of which must be met. First, the filing status cannot be married filing separately; single, head of household, qualifying surviving spouse, and married filing jointly are all acceptable. Second, no other taxpayer may claim the taxpayer as a dependent on their return for the year. Third, the taxpayer must be legally obligated to pay interest on a qualified student loan - meaning the loan obligation must be in the taxpayer's own name. Fourth, the taxpayer must have actually paid interest on that qualified student loan during the tax year. If any one of these four requirements is not satisfied, the deduction is not available regardless of how much interest was paid or how low the taxpayer's income may be.
Generally, you can claim the deduction if all of the follow- ing requirements are met. • Your filing status is any filing status except married fil- ing separately. • No one else is claiming you as a dependent on their tax return. • You are legally obligated to pay interest on a qualified student loan. • You paid interest on a qualified student loan.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Payments that do not count as student loan interest
Certain payments related to student loans do not qualify as deductible interest. You cannot claim a student loan interest deduction for interest paid on a loan if, under the loan terms, you are not legally obligated to make interest payments. Loan origination fees also do not count as interest if they are payments for property or services provided by the lender, such as commitment fees or processing costs, rather than for the use of money. Additionally, interest paid on a loan does not qualify to the extent that payments were made through your participation in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program or certain other loan repayment assistance programs. This means that if a third party pays interest on your behalf through a repayment assistance program, that amount is not deductible by you. Only interest that you are legally obligated to pay and actually pay with your own funds qualifies for the deduction, subject to the income phase-out rules and the $2,500 maximum limit.
Don't Include as Interest You can't claim a student loan interest deduction for any of the following items. • Interest you paid on a loan if, under the terms of the loan, you aren't legally obligated to make interest pay- ments. • Loan origination fees that are payments for property or services provided by the lender, such as commitment fees or processing costs. • Interest you paid on a loan to the extent payments were made through your participation in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program (the NHSC Loan Repayment Program) or certain other loan repayment assistance programs.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
You can keep deducting interest for as long as the loan lasts
For the 2022 tax year, the IRS allows taxpayers to deduct interest paid on a qualified student loan for as long as the borrower continues to make payments. This includes voluntary payments made before they are required. There is no time limit on how many years the deduction can be claimed; it remains available until the entire loan balance is satisfied. As long as the other eligibility requirements are met - such as being legally obligated to pay the interest, not being claimed as a dependent, and not filing as married filing separately - the deduction can be taken each year interest is paid. The maximum deduction allowed is $2,500 per year, subject to income phase-outs based on modified adjusted gross income. For single filers, the phase-out begins at $70,000 and the deduction is fully eliminated at $85,000. For married couples filing jointly, the phase-out starts at $145,000 and ends at $175,000.
You can deduct all interest you paid during the year on your student loan, including voluntary payments, until the loan is paid off.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Where the deduction actually lands on your return
The 2022 student loan interest deduction is not an itemized deduction; it is an adjustment to income, which means you can claim it even if you take the standard deduction. This is significant because it lowers your adjusted gross income directly, rather than being subject to the limitations that apply to itemized deductions. To claim the deduction on your federal return, you must enter the allowable amount on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 21. Schedule 1 is the form used to report additional income and adjustments that do not fit on the front page of Form 1040 or 1040-SR. The amount you enter on line 21 flows through to your main return and reduces your total income. You generally figure the deductible amount using the Student Loan Interest Deduction Worksheet in the Schedule 1 instructions, applying the $2,500 maximum and the income phase-out based on your modified adjusted gross income.
The student loan interest deduction is an adjustment to in- come. To claim the deduction, enter the allowable amount on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 21.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
The same interest cannot be deducted twice under two different provisions
The IRS prevents taxpayers from receiving two tax benefits for the same interest payment. Under the no-double-benefit rule, you cannot deduct as interest on a student loan any amount that is already an allowable deduction under another provision of the tax law. For example, if interest on a loan qualifies as home mortgage interest and you itemize that deduction, you cannot also claim it as student loan interest. The rule also blocks a second benefit when tax-free earnings from a qualified tuition program are distributed and used to pay student loan interest. To the extent those earnings are treated as tax free because they covered the interest, that same interest cannot be deducted on your return. The purpose is to ensure that each dollar of interest produces only one tax benefit, not both an above-the-line deduction and another exclusion or deduction elsewhere. Borrowers should make sure the interest they report for the student loan deduction has not already been claimed under a different provision of the tax code.
You can't deduct as interest on a student loan any amount that is an allowable deduction under any other provision of the tax law (for example, home mortgage interest).
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Refinancing for more than the original balance can disqualify all the interest
When a borrower refinances a qualified student loan, the IRS allows the new loan to remain eligible for the interest deduction only if the refinanced amount does not exceed the original loan balance, or if any excess is used for qualified education expenses. If you refinance a qualified student loan for more than your original loan and you use the additional amount for any purpose other than qualified education expenses, you lose the deduction entirely. This is a strict rule: it does not merely reduce the deductible portion of the interest; it disqualifies all interest paid on the refinanced loan. The consequence applies as long as any of the extra proceeds go toward non-educational purposes, such as paying off credit cards, buying a car, or covering living expenses. Borrowers considering a cash-out refinance of a student loan should be aware that doing so can eliminate the student loan interest deduction on the entire balance going forward.
If you refinance a qualified student loan for more than your original loan and you use the additional amount for any purpose other than qualified edu- cation expenses, you can't deduct any interest paid on the refinanced loan.
Publication 970 (2022), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
Rev. Proc. 2021-45 (IRS)
- Maximum deduction
For taxable years beginning in 2022, the $2,500 maximum deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans under § 221 begins to phase out
- Phase-out threshold, single filers
begins to phase out under § 221(b)(2)(B) for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $70,000
- Phase-out threshold, joint filers
for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $70,000 ($145,000 for joint returns)
- Fully phased out, single filers
is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $85,000 or more ($175,000 or more for joint returns).
- Fully phased out, joint filers
is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $85,000 or more ($175,000 or more for joint returns).