What Is Schedule 3 Line 15 on Your Tax Return?

Schedule 3, Line 15 on your Form 1040 is the total of the refundable credits and other payments listed in Part II of the schedule — the sum of Lines 9 through 12 and Line 14. That total then transfers to Form 1040, Line 31, where it reduces the tax you owe or adds to your refund.1Internal Revenue Service. Schedule 3 (Form 1040) – Additional Credits and Payments

For most people filing Schedule 3, the only Part II entry is the net premium tax credit on Line 9, so Line 9 and Line 15 end up showing the same dollar amount. If you also have another refundable item, such as the credit for tax on undistributed capital gains on Line 12, those amounts stack together on Line 15.

What Line 15 Adds Up

Part II of Schedule 3 collects refundable credits and other payments that don’t have their own line on Form 1040. Line 15 is the totaling line for that part. The entries feeding into it are:

  • Line 9 — Net premium tax credit (from Form 8962)
  • Line 10 — Amount paid with a request for an extension to file
  • Line 11 — Excess Social Security and tier 1 RRTA tax withheld
  • Line 12 — Credit for federal tax on fuels
  • Line 14 — Other payments or refundable credits

Add those together and the result goes on Line 15, then on Form 1040, Line 31.1Internal Revenue Service. Schedule 3 (Form 1040) – Additional Credits and Payments “Refundable” means these credits can push your tax liability below zero; if the total exceeds what you owe, the IRS pays you the difference.

The Net Premium Tax Credit on Line 9

Because the net premium tax credit is the most common reason people fill out Schedule 3, Part II, it’s worth walking through how that number is built. The premium tax credit helps offset the cost of health insurance bought through the Health Insurance Marketplace.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 36B – Refundable Credit for Coverage Under a Qualified Health Plan Most enrollees get advance payments during the year: the Marketplace estimates your income and sends part of the credit straight to your insurer each month to lower your premium.3Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8962, Premium Tax Credit

At tax time you reconcile those advance payments against the credit your actual income entitled you to. If your real credit turned out to be larger than what was paid to the insurer, the difference is your net premium tax credit. That’s the amount that lands on Form 8962, Line 26, then on Schedule 3, Line 9, and into the Line 15 total.4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8962

Getting the Number: Form 1095-A and Form 8962

After the year ends, the Marketplace sends you Form 1095-A. It lists your monthly enrollment premiums, the second lowest cost silver plan (SLCSP) premium for your area, and the advance payments made on your behalf.5Internal Revenue Service. Health Insurance Marketplace Statements The SLCSP is the benchmark the IRS uses to figure your credit: the credit fills the gap between that benchmark premium and the share of income you’re expected to contribute.

If the SLCSP amount is missing or looks off, you can look up the correct figure with the tax tool at HealthCare.gov before filing.6HealthCare.gov. Health Care Tax Forms, Instructions and Tools For other errors on the form, contact the Marketplace Call Center at 1-800-318-2596 to request a corrected 1095-A.

The 1095-A data goes onto Form 8962, which calculates the actual credit against the advance payments. Part I determines your household size and where your income falls on the federal poverty guidelines. The rest of the form runs the reconciliation. The output splits two ways: a net credit owed to you (Line 26) or excess advance payments you owe back (Line 29).4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8962

What Doesn’t Go on Line 15: Excess Advance Payments

If your advance payments were larger than the credit you actually earned — usually because your income came in higher than what you estimated to the Marketplace — the excess is not a refundable credit. It’s an amount you owe. It goes on Form 8962, Line 29, and transfers to Schedule 2, Line 1a, not Schedule 3.4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8962 From Schedule 2 it increases the tax on your return.

For 2025 and earlier, the amount you had to repay was capped based on income, with limits between $375 and $3,250 depending on filing status and household income. For the 2026 tax year, those repayment caps are gone. You repay the full excess regardless of income.7Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Are There Limits to How Much Excess Advance Payments of the Premium Tax Credit Consumers Must Pay Back

It is possible to have both a net credit on Line 26 and a repayment on Line 29 in the same year if you had coverage under different Marketplace policies. In that case, one figure lifts Line 15 and the other lifts Schedule 2, Line 1a.

Eligibility Changes That Affect the Line 9 Amount for 2026

Two 2026 changes can shrink or eliminate the number you’d otherwise put on Schedule 3, Line 9.

First, the 400% income cap is back. From 2021 through 2025, the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act removed the cap, letting higher-income households qualify for a reduced credit. That expansion has ended. For 2026, if household income exceeds 400% of the federal poverty level, you don’t qualify for the credit at all — and you must repay every dollar of advance payments made on your behalf.8Internal Revenue Service. Questions and Answers on the Premium Tax Credit

Second, the applicable percentage — the share of your income you’re expected to put toward the benchmark plan — went up. Revenue Procedure 2025-25 sets the 2026 required contributions between 2.10% for households below 133% of the poverty level and 9.96% for those between 300% and 400%.9Internal Revenue Service. Revenue Procedure 2025-25 These are higher than the temporary 2021–2025 percentages, so the credit at any given income level is generally smaller.

The core eligibility rules for the credit itself haven’t changed: you must have enrolled in a qualified Marketplace plan, have household income between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level, not be eligible for other minimum essential coverage like affordable employer insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, not be claimed as someone else’s dependent, and generally file jointly if married.8Internal Revenue Service. Questions and Answers on the Premium Tax Credit

Filing Is Required If You Got Any Advance Payments

If advance premium tax credit payments were made on your behalf for any month of the year, you have to file a federal return and attach Form 8962, even if your income would otherwise be below the filing threshold.10Internal Revenue Service. The Premium Tax Credit – The Basics Filing the return without Form 8962 will delay your refund.

Not filing at all is worse. The Marketplace can cut off future advance payments, leaving you on the hook for the full monthly premium going forward, and you may owe back the advance payments already made.11Internal Revenue Service. Premium Tax Credit – Claiming the Credit and Reconciling Advance Credit Payments The IRS matches returns against the enrollment data the Marketplace sends over, so mismatches get flagged as a matter of course.12Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP06/CP06A Notice

The Flow, End to End

To trace a net premium tax credit from Marketplace paperwork to your refund:

  • Form 1095-A reports your enrollment, premiums, SLCSP, and advance payments.
  • Form 8962 reconciles those against the credit your actual income earned.
  • Form 8962, Line 26 shows the net premium tax credit still owed to you.
  • Schedule 3, Line 9 carries that amount forward.
  • Schedule 3, Line 15 totals Line 9 with any other Part II items.
  • Form 1040, Line 31 pulls the Line 15 total into your final tax calculation.1Internal Revenue Service. Schedule 3 (Form 1040) – Additional Credits and Payments

If the reconciliation runs the other way — advance payments exceeded your earned credit — that amount takes a different path through Schedule 2 and adds to your tax rather than reducing it.