This Form 3903 2026 guide explains the IRS Moving Expenses. Form 3903 calculates the moving expense deduction for taxpayers eligible under the rules for the relevant year. Eligibility must be established before expenses are totaled. Reimbursements and the categories of permitted expenses also matter, so a personal move does not automatically support a deduction.
Reviewed October 31, 2026. This is an independent guide. The version and availability information below identifies the IRS documents used for this page.
What Form 3903 2026 does and who prepares it
An individual who meets the applicable-year moving-expense eligibility rules uses the form when required.
For the connected reporting route, see Form 1040 (Schedule 1). Keep the role of that document separate from the task explained on this page.
| Official form | Form 3903 |
|---|---|
| IRS title | Moving Expenses |
| Guide period | 2026 |
| Target version | 2026 |
| Availability | Draft — not for filing |
| Last checked | October 31, 2026 |
Get the Form 3903 2026 PDF and check its status
Use the IRS source to confirm the document before completing a real filing. The download link is a reference to the official file; it is not a statement that every copy inside the PDF may be printed and submitted. Follow any instructions about electronic filing, scannable copies, recipient copies or attachments.
Which version of Form 3903 2026 should you use?
The 2026 in the title identifies the tax year or calendar-year information addressed by this guide. For a 2026 income reporting document, the preparation or filing activity may occur in 2027. Do not change the income year simply because the calendar has changed. The exact filing or furnishing date comes from the instructions for this form and the filer circumstances. The linked target PDF is a draft. It may be used to understand the proposed layout, but it is not a form to file. Amounts or instructions still subject to completion must be checked again when the final version is released.
Records to gather for Form 3903 2026
- Orders or other eligibility support.
- Moving expense receipts.
- Travel records.
- Employer reimbursement records.
- Dates and locations of the move.
Keep a working reconciliation with these records. It should show the source of each reported item, any correction made before filing and the reason a different amount appears on a connected form. This is especially useful when a statement is corrected or a prior-year balance continues into the current calculation.
How to work through Form 3903 2026
- Confirm applicability. Start with the purpose, filer category and version of the form. Complete any eligibility or applicability question before spending time on the numerical calculation.
- Prepare the source workpapers. Gather the records listed below and reconcile their totals. Keep prior-year balances, current-year transactions and estimated payments separate where they serve different purposes.
- Complete dependent calculations first. When a line refers to another form, schedule or worksheet, finish that supporting calculation first. Preserve any classification, limitation and carryforward information.
- Follow the line sequence. Use the actual line labels and arithmetic in the applicable form. A line number from an older version may refer to something different after a revision.
- Reconcile the filing package. Check names, identifying numbers, tax periods, totals and required attachments. Then use the filing method, signature process and deadline that apply to this filer and form.
Form-specific IRS instructions and reporting details
The following points retain the operative wording of the IRS documents linked above. Read each point with its stated conditions and the applicable form version. References to another form or section describe a connected requirement; they do not mean that every reader must file every referenced document.
Standard mileage rate. For 2026, the standard mileage rate for using your vehicle to move to a new home is 20.5 cents a mile (23.5 cents a mile after June 30, 2026).
Reminders Moving expense deduction for certain Armed Forces mem bers. You can deduct moving expenses if you are a member of the Armed Forces on active duty and, due to a military order, you move because of a permanent change of station. Checkbox. A checkbox was added to certify that you meet the requirements to claim moving expenses. See Specific Instructions, later, for how to report this deduction.
Moving expense deduction expanded to include members of the intelligence community. For tax years beginning after 2025, you can deduct moving expense if you are a member of the intelligence community who moves due to a change in assignment that requires relocation.
• The intelligence elements of the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marine Corps, the Space Force, the Coast Guard, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Department of Energy. • The Bureau of Intelligence and Research of the Department of State. • The Office of Intelligence and Analysis of the Department of the Treasury. • The Office of Intelligence and Analysis of the Department of Homeland Security. • Such other elements of any department or agency as may be designated by the President or designated jointly by the Director of National Intelligence and the head of the department or agency concerned as an element of the intelligence community.
Additional reporting conditions
A foreign move is a move from the United States or its territories to a foreign country or from one foreign country to another foreign country. A move from a foreign country to the United States or its territories isn’t a foreign move. For purposes of determining whether a move is a foreign move, a U.S. military base is not a territory of the United States and moving to a U.S. military base located in a foreign country is a foreign move.
For a foreign move, the deductible moving expenses described earlier are expanded to include the reasonable expenses of the following.
If you file Form 2555, Foreign Earned Income, to exclude any of your income or housing costs, report the full amount of your deductible moving expenses on Form 3903 and on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 14. Report the part of your moving expenses that is not allowed as a deduction because it is allocable to the excluded income on the appropriate line of Form 2555. For details on how to figure the part allocable to the excluded income, see Pub. 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad.
Calculations and supporting information
Specific Instructions You can deduct moving expenses only if you are a member of the Armed Forces on active duty and, due to a military order, you, your spouse, or your dependents move because of a permanent change of station or if you are a member of the intelligence community who moves pursuant to a change in assignment that requires relocation. You can deduct expenses you paid to move your family and dependent household members. Do not deduct moving expenses for employees such as a maid, nanny, or nurse.
Caution: Check the box to certify that you meet the requirements to claim moving expenses. If the military moves you, your spouse, and dependents to or from different locations, treat these moves as a single move. Caution: Don’t deduct any expenses for moving or storage services provided by the government.
Enter the amount you paid to travel from your old home to your new home. This includes transportation and lodging on the way. Include costs for the day you arrive. The members of your household do not have to travel together or at the same time. But you can only include expenses for one trip per person. Do not include any house hunting expenses.
Exceptions and related reporting
Moving household goods and personal effects. You can deduct the expenses of moving your household goods and personal effects, including expenses for hauling a trailer, packing, crating, in-transit storage, and insurance. You can’t deduct expenses for moving furniture or other goods you bought on the way from your old home to your new home. Storing and insuring household goods and personal effects.
You can include only the cost of storing and insuring your household goods and personal effects within any period of 30 consecutive days after the day these goods and effects are moved from your former home and before they are delivered to your new home.
• Moving your household goods and personal effects to and from storage. • Storing these items for part or all of the time the new job location remains your main job location. The new job location must be outside the United States.
You can add parking fees and tolls to the amount claimed under either method. Complete line 2 of the form using your actual expenses. Don’t include any expenses for moving services provided by the government. Also, don’t include any expenses that were reimbursed by an allowance you don’t have to include in your income.
Further form details
If line 3 is more than line 4, subtract line 4 from line 3 and enter the result on line 5 and on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 14. This is your moving expense deduction. If line 3 is equal to or less than line 4, you don’t have a moving expense deduction. Subtract line 3 from line 4 and, if the result is more than zero, enter it on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 1h.
You cannot deduct your moving expenses. If line 3 is less than line 4, subtract line 3 from line 4 and include the result on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, line 1h.
Reading the lines and boxes
These selected labels come from the linked target PDF. They are a reading aid, not a replacement for the full line instructions or a completed calculation. Match the label and document version before transferring any amount.
| Line or box | Label in the source form | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transportation and storage of household goods and personal effects (see instructions) | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 2 | Travel (including lodging) from your old home to your new home (see instructions). Do not include the | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 3 | Add lines 1 and 2 | Follow the stated arithmetic and line references in sequence. Complete the referenced inputs first and retain the worksheet supporting the result. |
| 4 | Enter the total amount the government paid you for the expenses listed on lines 1 and 2 that is not | Follow the stated arithmetic and line references in sequence. Complete the referenced inputs first and retain the worksheet supporting the result. |
| 5 | Is line 3 more than line 4? | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
A practical example
A taxpayer moves in connection with qualifying service or employment circumstances. The taxpayer checks the applicable eligibility rule, gathers orders and reimbursement details and then calculates only the expense categories permitted for that move.
This example illustrates the order of the review. It does not assume an unverified deduction, exemption, treaty rate or final tax amount. The applicable form instructions and the actual records determine the result.
Common mistakes to avoid with Form 3903 2026
- Use the current-year eligibility rules instead of an outdated general moving-expense rule.
- Separate reimbursed from unreimbursed expenses.
- Only the expense categories allowed by the instructions belong in the calculation.
Questions about Form 3903 2026
Does receiving or downloading this form mean I must file it?
An individual who meets the applicable-year moving-expense eligibility rules uses the form when required. The form purpose and the applicable filing or furnishing conditions determine the action. Downloading a blank PDF does not itself create a filing obligation or establish eligibility for a tax benefit.
Can I file the draft PDF?
No. The linked target is marked as a draft. Use it to understand the proposed layout and prepare records, but wait for the applicable final filing version. Check the IRS source again before using any year-specific amount, worksheet or filing instruction.
What should I do if the underlying information is wrong?
Use the current-year eligibility rules instead of an outdated general moving-expense rule. Keep the original record and the correction trail. The issuer correction process, an amended return and an updated certificate can be different procedures. Choose the process that matches the document and the actual error.
Which records should I keep with the completed form?
Retain the source documents, applicable worksheets, submitted version and filing or furnishing confirmations. For this form, the working file should include orders or other eligibility support, moving expense receipts, travel records. Keep continuing balances and prior-year support for as long as they remain relevant under the applicable recordkeeping rules.
Related forms and next steps
Use these guides when the connected issue applies to your records. Each page has its own purpose, reporting year and availability status.