Cancellation of debt: What is IRS Form 1099-C?

If you’ve ever had to manage debt, you know it can be a true burden. For various reasons, debt can be cancelled—but that doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook for financial responsibilities. If your credit card debt, car loans, or mortgage is forgiven (or you go into foreclosure), you may owe taxes and receive an unexpected tax form—the 1099-C.

In this post, we’ll walk through the definition of a 1099-C and debt cancellation, what to do when you get one, cancellation of debt income exclusions, and general guidance about the 1099 C form so you can file with confidence if you get one.

What is canceled debt?

As the name implies, debt cancellation means that your debt was forgiven or discharged by the lender or creditor. For instance, if you negotiate a debt settlement from a credit card company, and a portion or all of your credit card debt was forgiven, you’ll experience cancellation of debt. Other instances where canceled debts apply include:

• Forgiven car loans
• Foreclosures
• Repossessions
• Property abandonments
• Modifications of mortgage amount on a principal residence

What is a 1099-C?

When debt is canceled, taxpayers will receive a specific document called Form 1099 C: Cancellation of Debt from the IRS.

The federal government agency or an applicable financial institution (a creditor) will send a 1099 C form when the lender discharged (canceled or forgiven) debt and the canceled debts are $600 or more. The issuer also reports the amount of debt forgiveness on the form to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Who should file Form 1099-C?

A lender or entity that cancels your debt files a 1099 C form with the IRS (Copy A). They’ll send you a copy of the form (Copy B). You’ll also get another copy (Copy C) to keep for your own records. (Taxpayers and the IRS receive informational returns like the 1099-C. They don’t file them.)

The items reported on Form 1099 C are:

• Date of the event
• Amount of debt discharged
• Interest (if included)
• Debt description
• Whether you are personally liable for the debt (recourse loans)
• Identifiable even code (such as bankruptcy, foreclosure, etc.)
• Fair market value of the property

1099-C instructions

While you don’t have to provide the Form 1099 C with your return, you should use it to prepare and file your federal tax return, as the canceled debt may be included in your gross income unless an exception applies. Use Copy B of the 1099-C to report canceled debts on Schedule 1 of Form 1040 as other income.

Cancellation of debt exclusions

In some cases, your forgiven debt is taxable—and in others, it’s not. There are exceptions to paying taxes on your canceled debt if one of these applies:

• You’re insolvent: This happens when your financial liabilities are more than your assets.
• The debt was discharged in a Title 11 bankruptcy: This happens when your debt was wiped clean in the bankruptcy proceeding.
• The debt was from qualified main home indebtedness: This debt usually comes from taking out a loan to buy or improve your home.
• The debt was from qualified farm indebtedness: This happens when debts are taken on by a farmer specifically to run or improve the farm. It includes loans or credit used to buy farm equipment, animals, land, seeds, or other farming needs. The debt usually qualifies if it was taken from a bank or other lender and used mainly for farm operations.)
• The debt was qualified as real property business indebtedness: This happens when there’s a debt a taxpayer owes on real estate—like buildings, offices, or land—used for business purposes. It’s typically from loans taken to buy, build, or improve these properties.

If you qualify for an exception, you can omit the forgiven amount from gross income and file IRS Form 982 to report the exclusion.

Forgiveness of debt: IRS insolvency exclusion details

Let’s take a deeper look at insolvency where debt and taxes are concerned. To make sure we’re on the same page, insolvent means that your total debts are greater than the fair market value (FMV) of your assets.

The insolvency exclusion for taxes is a rule that allows you to exclude some or all canceled debt from your taxable income if you were insolvent when the debt was canceled.  

When you qualify for the insolvency exclusion, you only pay taxes on any forgiven debt amount that’s more than the amount by which you are insolvent. This can lower or even remove the tax burden on canceled debt, depending on how much you owe compared to what you own. For example, if $5,000 of your debt has been cancelled, and your total liabilities are $3,000 more than your assets, only $2,000 of the cancelled debt is taxable.

IRS Publication 4681: Canceled Debts, Foreclosures, Repossessions, and Abandonments has an insolvency worksheet you can use to determine if all or part of your canceled debt must be included in income. The worksheet compares your total assets and your total liabilities.

If your liabilities are more than your assets immediately before your debt was canceled, you will not be required to pay taxes to the extent you are insolvent.

Forgiveness of debt: qualified principal residence indebtedness exclusion

You might be able to exclude the cancellation of debt income if apply:

• The debt is acquisition indebtedness—in simpler terms, your debt was from buying, building, or improving your home.
• You owned the home and used it as your primary residence. The main home indebtedness exclusion also includes any debt you incurred that you used to refinance a mortgage you originally used to buy, build, or substantially improve your main home. Only an amount up to the amount of the old mortgage principal just before the refinancing can qualify. In addition, the maximum amount for qualified debt is up to:
  • $750,000 million for Married Filing Jointly
  • $375,000 if you’re Married Filing Separately

FAQs: Form 1099-C and debt forgiveness tax responsibilities

Here are other common questions we get about the tax treatment of debt cancellation. Read on to hear if any apply to you:

1. What happens if you don’t get a 1099-C form from your lender?

If you know you have canceled debt of at least $600 but didn’t receive a Form 1099 C, you should contact the lender and get a copy of the form. Depending on circumstances you may still need to include the exact amount of forgiven debt on your income tax return.

2. If you don’t include forgiven debt on your return, can you amend it?

Yes, you can amend your original tax return to include the forgiven debt shown as taxable income on Form 1099-C using Form 1040-X. You may owe additional tax after amending. Alternatively, if an exception applies, you may need to include Form 982 with your amended return.

3. I received a Form 1099-C form for an old debt. What should I do?

There’s no statute of limitations on Form 1099-C. In other words, lenders and debt collectors may send out 1099-C forms on old debts.

If you receive a 1099-C on the debt, there are several courses of action to take. If you think the 1099-C is incorrect you can contact the issuer and have the form rescinded if they agree. Otherwise, you need to either include the income on an original or amended tax return for the year the debt is forgiven or claim an exception on Form 982.

Connect with a tax pro to determine how to best handle the situation.

4. Can creditors collect after issuing a 1099-C?

No, a creditor generally cannot collect the debt after it is forgiven and a Form 1099-C has been issued, although creditors may try to collect other debts. It might be best for you to get legal advice in this case.

Get help filing your return with 1099 cancellation of debt

Need help filing your 1099-C? Or help with other 1099 forms? Whether you choose to file with a tax pro or file with H&R Block Online, you can rest assured that we’ll get you the biggest refund possible.