2024 Student Loan Interest Deduction
For 2024, the Student Loan Interest Deduction figures are $2,500 (Maximum deduction), $80,000 (Phase-out threshold, single filers), $165,000 (Phase-out threshold, joint filers) and 2 more figures below.
| Item | Single filers | Joint filers |
|---|---|---|
| Phase-out threshold | $80,000 | $165,000 |
| Fully phased out | $95,000 | $195,000 |
Effective 2024-01-01Source: Rev. Proc. 2023-34 (IRS)Verified 2026-09-02
Compared with 2023
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum deduction | $2,500 | $2,500 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
| Phase-out threshold, single filers | $75,000 | $80,000 | +$5,000 (+6.7%) |
| Phase-out threshold, joint filers | $155,000 | $165,000 | +$10,000 (+6.5%) |
| Fully phased out, single filers | $90,000 | $95,000 | +$5,000 (+5.6%) |
| Fully phased out, joint filers | $185,000 | $195,000 | +$10,000 (+5.4%) |
Phase-out threshold
Fully phased out
$80,000$195,000
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 an above-the-line deduction under IRC § 221.
What changed this year, and why
For taxable years beginning in 2024, the IRS published inflation-adjusted amounts for the student loan interest deduction under Internal Revenue Code Section 221, as set forth in Revenue Procedure 2023-34.
Common questions
- What is the maximum student loan interest deduction for 2024?
- The maximum deduction is $2,500 for taxable years beginning in 2024.
- At what income level does the deduction begin to phase out?
- The deduction begins to phase out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income over $80,000 (single filers) or over $165,000 (joint filers).
- At what income level is the deduction completely eliminated?
- The deduction is fully phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $95,000 or more (single filers) or $195,000 or more (joint filers).
Every amount on this page is a published figure rather than yours. The Student loan interest deduction for a single filer takes the number you enter and works it out against them, showing which published figure it used.
How the deduction is reduced inside the phase-out range
When your modified adjusted gross income falls within the phase-out range, your student loan interest deduction is reduced proportionally. The calculation works as follows: First, determine your tentative deduction, which is the interest you paid capped at $2,500. Then multiply that amount by a fraction. The top of the fraction is your MAGI minus the phase-out threshold for your filing status - $80,000 for single filers or $165,000 for joint filers. The bottom of the fraction is $15,000 for single filers or $30,000 for joint filers. Finally, subtract the result from your tentative deduction to arrive at the amount you may actually claim. As income rises through the range, the fraction grows larger and the deduction shrinks. Once MAGI reaches the upper limit of $95,000 for single filers or $195,000 for joint filers, the entire deduction is eliminated.
To figure the phaseout, multiply your in- terest deduction (before the phaseout, but not more than $2,500) by a fraction. The numerator (top part) is your MAGI minus $80,000 ($165,000 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 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
The income the phase-out is measured on
The phaseout is measured against modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). For most taxpayers, MAGI is simply the adjusted gross income (AGI) shown on the federal income tax return before subtracting any deduction for student loan interest. In other words, you take AGI as normally computed and add back the student loan interest deduction amount (up to $2,500) to get MAGI for phaseout purposes. Certain taxpayers must make additional modifications: filers using Form 1040-NR figure MAGI from line 11 of that form without taking into account the student loan interest deduction on Schedule 1, line 21, and some taxpayers with tax-free foreign earned income or Puerto Rico exclusions must also add those amounts back. The resulting MAGI is then compared to the phaseout thresholds ($80,000 single, $165,000 joint) to determine whether and by how much the deduction is reduced.
For most taxpayers, MAGI is AGI as figured on their federal income tax return before subtracting any deduction for student loan interest.
Publication 970 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Who can claim the deduction
To claim the student loan interest deduction, a taxpayer must satisfy all of the following conditions: the filing status must be any status other than married filing separately; no one else may claim the taxpayer as a dependent on their tax return; the taxpayer must be legally obligated to pay interest on a qualified student loan; and the taxpayer must have actually paid interest on a qualified student loan during the tax year. Married taxpayers filing separately are categorically ineligible regardless of income. A taxpayer who can be claimed as a dependent by another person - such as a parent claiming a college student - also cannot take the deduction, even if they paid the interest themselves from their own earnings. The legal obligation requirement means that if the loan terms do not require the taxpayer to make interest payments, those payments do not qualify.
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 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Payments that do not count as student loan interest
Certain payments cannot be counted as student loan interest for purposes of the deduction. First, interest paid on a loan is not deductible if, under the terms of the loan, you are not legally obligated to make interest payments - voluntary payments on a loan that does not require interest are excluded. Second, loan origination fees that are actually payments for property or services provided by the lender, such as commitment fees or processing costs, do not qualify as interest; only origination fees that represent a charge for the use of money may be treated as interest. Third, interest paid on a loan is excluded to the extent payments were made through your participation in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program or certain other loan repayment assistance programs. Only interest for which you bear a legal obligation and that is not covered by these programs may be included when computing the deduction.
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.
Publication 970 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
You can keep deducting interest for as long as the loan lasts
For 2024, the student loan interest deduction lets a borrower reduce taxable income by the interest paid on a qualified student loan. The IRS does not impose a time limit on how many years the deduction may be taken. Instead, a taxpayer may deduct the interest for as long as the loan remains outstanding. Once the borrower has repaid the full balance and the loan is paid off, the deduction ends. This applies whether the borrower is in the original repayment period or is making extended payments, and voluntary payments count just as payments under a required schedule do. The maximum amount a taxpayer can deduct in 2024 is $2,500 of interest. The deduction is available regardless of the loan's original term, so borrowers who have been repaying for many years can continue to benefit until the balance reaches zero.
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 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Where the deduction actually lands on your return
The student loan interest deduction is not an itemized deduction taken on Schedule A; it is an above-the-line adjustment to income. For 2024, that means it directly reduces your adjusted gross income even if you take the standard deduction. To claim it, you report the allowable amount on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 21, which then flows to your main return. The maximum deduction for the year is $2,500 of interest, but the actual amount you can enter may be lower if your modified adjusted gross income falls within the phase-out range - $80,000 to $95,000 for single filers, or $165,000 to $195,000 for married filing jointly. Once your MAGI reaches or exceeds the upper end of the range, the deduction is eliminated entirely and you enter zero on line 21. The line cannot be used to deduct any interest that is already claimed under another provision of the tax code.
To claim the deduction, enter the allowable amount on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 21.
Publication 970 (2024), Tax Benefits for Education (IRS)
Refinancing for more than the original balance can disqualify all the interest
When you refinance a qualified student loan, the new loan can still count as a qualified student loan - but only if the refinanced amount does not exceed the original balance. If you refinance for more than the original loan and use any of the extra cash for a non-qualified purpose (such as home improvements, a car, or general living expenses), the IRS treats the entire refinanced loan as disqualified. As the publication states, you can't deduct any interest paid on the refinanced loan, not just the interest attributable to the excess amount. The loss is total, not partial. To preserve the deduction, a refinancing must be used solely to pay off one or more existing qualified student loans of the same borrower, or - in the case of a consolidation loan - solely to refinance two or more such loans. The $2,500 annual cap and the income phase-out ranges ($80,000–$95,000 single, $165,000–$195,000 joint) become irrelevant once the loan itself fails to qualify.
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 (2024), 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. 2023-34 (IRS)
- Maximum deduction
For taxable years beginning in 2024, 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), as adjusted for inflation, for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $80,000
- Phase-out threshold, joint filers
for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income in excess of $80,000 ($165,000 for joint returns)
- Fully phased out, single filers
is completely phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $95,000 or more
- Fully phased out, joint filers
phased out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income of $95,000 or more ($195,000 or more for joint returns)