To find your capital loss carryover from last year, pull out last year’s Schedule D and look for the Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet in the supporting pages behind it. That worksheet states the exact short-term and long-term carryover amounts on two specific lines, and those are the only two numbers you need for this year’s return.
The Worksheet Behind Last Year’s Schedule D
The Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet isn’t a standalone IRS form. It’s embedded in the Schedule D instruction booklet, and tax software generates its own version automatically as part of your return. If you saved a PDF or printout of last year’s filing, the worksheet sits in the supporting pages behind Schedule D itself.
The worksheet splits your unused loss into two buckets. On the 2025 version, line 8 shows your short-term capital loss carryover and line 13 shows your long-term capital loss carryover. Those are the figures that flow onto this year’s return. Keep them separate; don’t add them together.
If you used tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block, search your archived return for headings such as “Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet,” “Schedule D Supporting Details,” or “Capital Loss Carryover Calculation.” The software version contains the same information as the IRS worksheet, just formatted differently.
If You Only Have Schedule D and Not the Worksheet
When the worksheet is missing but you still have Schedule D, three lines carry the information you need:
- Line 16: your total net capital gain or loss for the year, combining all short-term and long-term transactions.
- Line 21: the capital loss actually deducted against ordinary income, capped at $3,000 (or $1,500 for married filing separately).
- Lines 6 and 14: any carryover from an even earlier year that was already folded into last year’s calculation.
The basic math is subtraction. If last year’s net capital loss was $10,000 and you deducted the $3,000 maximum against ordinary income, your carryover is $7,000. The complication is that the worksheet preserves the split between short-term and long-term, and Schedule D alone doesn’t always make that split obvious. The $3,000 deduction absorbs short-term losses before long-term losses under the ordering rules, so the mix that carries forward depends on what type of loss you started with.
Pulling the Number From Tax Software
Most commercial tax programs import the carryover automatically when you roll over last year’s return file into this year’s program. TurboTax, for example, pulls the figure directly from the prior-year data file with no manual entry. If you switch software providers or start fresh, you’ll enter the short-term and long-term amounts yourself, usually under an “Investment Income” or “Capital Loss Carryover” section in the income interview.
This is where errors show up. The program asks for two numbers. If you type only the combined total, or put the whole amount in the short-term box because it was easier, the rest of your return will calculate incorrectly. Enter the two figures separately, exactly as they appear on last year’s worksheet.
Getting Records From the IRS When Last Year’s Return Is Gone
If you don’t have a copy of last year’s return, the IRS can supply one. There are two routes: a transcript, which is free, or an actual photocopy of the return, which costs $30 and takes up to 75 days.
Transcripts
The fastest option is ordering a transcript through your IRS online account at irs.gov. You can also call the automated transcript line at 800-908-9946 or mail Form 4506-T. Online delivery is immediate; mailed transcripts take 5 to 10 business days.
A Tax Return Transcript shows most line items from your original return as filed, including Schedule D data. A Record of Account Transcript combines that data with any later IRS adjustments. Either will give you the figures from Schedule D, including the net loss on line 16 and the deduction on line 21.
Transcripts generally don’t include the Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet itself. They confirm what you reported and deducted, but you may have to calculate the carryover from those figures.
Full Photocopy of the Return
If you need the complete return with all worksheets and attachments, file Form 4506 with a $30 fee per return requested. Processing takes up to 75 calendar days. It’s the only way to get the full document set from the IRS if your own copies are gone, but it’s not a quick fix.
Reconstructing the Carryover From Brokerage Records
When you have Schedule D figures from a transcript but no worksheet, you can rebuild the carryover yourself. You need to determine how much of the net loss was short-term and how much was long-term, then subtract the portion already deducted.
Start with your Form 1099-B statements from the brokerage where you sold the investments during the loss year. These show proceeds and cost basis for each transaction. Most brokerages keep these available through their online portal, often going back seven or more years.
Separate each transaction into short-term (held one year or less) and long-term (held more than one year). Total the net short-term gain or loss and the net long-term gain or loss. Then apply the Schedule D ordering rules: short-term losses offset short-term gains first, long-term losses offset long-term gains first, and any remaining net loss of either type crosses over to offset the other.
After netting everything, subtract the deduction you took against ordinary income, up to $3,000, or $1,500 if you filed married filing separately. That deduction absorbs short-term losses before long-term losses. Whatever remains is your carryover, still separated into short-term and long-term components.
The process is tedious, but the numbers have to match. If the carryover on your current return doesn’t line up with what the IRS expects from your prior filings, you can trigger a notice.
If You Forgot to Claim the Carryover in a Prior Year
You can’t skip a year and claim the full amount now. The IRS requires the carryover to move forward year by year, appearing on each intervening return in sequence.
The fix is Form 1040-X, filed for each year the carryover should have appeared. You recalculate each year’s Schedule D with the carryover included, which may reduce tax liability for those years and produce a refund. But refunds on amended returns are only available within three years of the original due date. Any year outside that window is closed. You lose whatever portion of the carryover would have been used in that closed year, though the remaining balance still flows forward into any open years and into the current one.
This happens more often than people expect, especially when taxpayers switch preparers or software and the carryover data fails to transfer. If you suspect an unclaimed carryover from several years back, pull transcripts for each intervening year, walk the loss forward year by year, apply it against any gains reported in each period, deduct up to $3,000 annually against ordinary income, and arrive at the current year with whatever balance remains.
Entering the Two Numbers on This Year’s Schedule D
Once you have the short-term and long-term carryover figures, they go on the current year’s Schedule D. Short-term carryover goes on line 6. Long-term carryover goes on line 14. Enter both as negative numbers, in parentheses.
They then combine with any new capital gains and losses you realized this year, following the same netting pattern: short-term against short-term, long-term against long-term, and any remainder crosses over. If a net loss remains after all offsets, you can deduct up to $3,000 ($1,500 if married filing separately) against ordinary income on line 21. Anything left over becomes next year’s carryover, calculated on a fresh Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet in this year’s Schedule D instructions.
One boundary worth knowing: for individuals, capital loss carryovers don’t expire. Under 26 U.S.C. ยง1212(b), unused net capital losses carry forward indefinitely, so an amount you can’t find on last year’s return may still trace back several years earlier. Corporations face a five-year expiration, but that limit doesn’t apply to individuals, estates, or trusts filing Form 1040.