Schedule A
Schedule A: Itemized Deductions That Beat the Standard
Schedule A of the 2025 Form 1040 lists itemized deductions — medical costs over the AGI floor, capped SALT, mortgage interest under §163(h), charity under §170, and casualty losses. Itemize only when the total beats the standard deduction: $15,750 single, $31,500 joint for 2025.
The five lines that matter
Medical and dental costs above 7.5% of AGI (§213(a)); state and local taxes up to the cap; home mortgage interest within the statutory limits (§163(h)); charitable gifts within AGI-based limits (§170); and casualty losses in federally declared disaster areas (§165(h)). Each line has its own ceiling or floor — run every one before totaling.
The beats-standard test
Add all five and compare against $15,750 single or $31,500 joint for 2025. Win and Schedule A carries to Form 1040, Line 12; lose and the standard deduction takes it with no receipts and no schedule. Bunched charity years and big medical years are what usually tip the scale.
What trips people up
Claiming SALT above the cap, deducting personal interest as mortgage interest, and skipping appraisals on large noncash gifts. Keep the §170 substantiation letters — the IRS asks for them exactly when you assumed it would not.
Questions, answered
- When does itemizing beat the standard deduction?
- When medical costs over the floor plus capped SALT, mortgage interest, charity, and casualty losses total more than $15,750 single or $31,500 joint for 2025.
- What is the medical expense floor?
- Only medical costs above 7.5% of AGI count, under section 213(a). Track every receipt so the amount over the floor is documented.
- Are casualty losses still deductible?
- Only losses in a federally declared disaster area, under section 165(h), net of insurance. Most personal losses no longer qualify.
Keep reading: Standard Deduction · AGI · Taxable Income