Introduction
If your deductions for the year are more than your income for the year, you may have a net operating loss (NOL). An NOL year
is the year in which an NOL occurs. You can use an NOL by deducting it from your income in another year or years.
What this publication covers.
This publication discusses NOLs for individuals, estates, and trusts. It covers:
To have an NOL, your loss must generally be caused by deductions from your:
A loss from operating a business is the most common reason for an NOL.
Partnerships and S corporations generally cannot use an NOL. However, partners or shareholders can use their separate shares
of the partnership's
or S corporation's business income and business deductions to figure their individual NOLs.
What is not covered in this publication?
The following topics are not covered in this publication.
-
Bankruptcies. See Publication 908, Bankruptcy Tax Guide.
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NOLs of Corporations. See Publication 542, Corporations.
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Specified liability losses. See the instructions for Form 1045, Application for Tentative Refund.
Comments and suggestions.
We welcome your comments about this publication and your suggestions for future editions.
You can write to us at the following address:
Internal Revenue Service
Individual Forms and Publications Branch
SE:W:CAR:MP:T:I
1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6406
Washington, DC 20224
We respond to many letters by telephone. Therefore, it would be helpful if you would include your daytime phone number,
including the area code, in
your correspondence.
You can email us at
*[email protected]. (The asterisk must be included in the
address.) Please put “
Publications Comment” on the subject line. Although we cannot respond individually to each email, we do appreciate your
feedback and will consider your comments as we revise our tax products.
Tax questions.
If you have a tax question, visit
www.irs.gov or call 1-800-829-1040. We cannot answer tax questions at either
of the addresses listed above.
Ordering forms and publications.
Visit
www.irs.gov/formspubs
to download forms and publications, call 1-800-829-3676, or write to one of the three addresses shown under
How To Get Tax Help in the back
of this publication.
