N-311: Refundable Food/Excise Tax Credit (2025)

Who files this form

Use Form N-311 if you want to claim Hawaii’s refundable food/excise tax credit for 2025. Complete it and attach it to Form N-11 or Form N-15.

You may claim the credit if you file an individual income tax return, even if you have no income or no taxable income, and you are not eligible to be claimed as another taxpayer’s dependent for federal or Hawaii income tax purposes.

Your federal adjusted gross income must be:

• Less than $40,000 if your filing status is Single.
• Less than $60,000 for the other filing statuses listed on the form. If married filing separately, combine your federal adjusted gross income with your spouse’s to apply this limit.

People counted for the credit must have been physically present in Hawaii for more than nine months in 2025, must not be claimed or eligible to be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer, and must not have been confined in prison, jail, or a youth correctional facility for the entire tax year. The form provides rules for counting yourself, your spouse, dependents, and minor children receiving public support.

When it's due

For tax year 2025, calendar-year taxpayers must claim the credit by December 31, 2026. This deadline also applies to amended claims.

You cannot claim or amend the credit after the deadline.

What you'll need

Have the following ready to complete Form N-311:

• Your federal income tax return. Complete it first because the credit uses federal adjusted gross income. If you are not required to file a federal return, use federal Form 1040 as a worksheet to determine that income.
• Your Hawaii Form N-11 or Form N-15. Use the same name or names on Form N-311 and enter your Social Security number.
• Your spouse’s federal adjusted gross income, if married filing separately.
• Names and relationships of the people you will count for the credit. For minor children listed on line 3, also provide their Social Security numbers.

How to file

1. Complete your federal return first, or use federal Form 1040 as a worksheet if you do not have to file a federal return.
2. Check the income limit on line 1.
3. List qualified people on line 2. Put qualifying minor children receiving more than half their support from public agencies on line 3 instead.
4. Enter your federal adjusted gross income on line 4. If married filing separately, enter your spouse’s federal adjusted gross income on line 5. Add these amounts on line 6.
5. Use the table for your filing status to enter the credit per qualified exemption on line 7.
6. Add the counts from lines 2 and 3 on line 8, then multiply line 8 by line 7. Enter the credit in whole dollars on line 9.
7. Transfer the credit to Form N-11, line 28, or Form N-15, line 45. Also enter the line 3 child count in the space provided beside that line.
8. Attach Form N-311 to your Hawaii income tax return.

The supplied text does not give a mailing address or e-filing instructions.

Common mistakes

• Using something other than federal adjusted gross income. The credit is based on federal adjusted gross income, so complete your federal return first or use Form 1040 as a worksheet.
• Leaving out your spouse’s income when married filing separately. You must combine both spouses’ federal adjusted gross incomes to check the $60,000 limit.
• Listing the same child twice. Minor children receiving more than half their support from public agencies belong on line 3, not line 2. Do not list a child on both lines.
• Both spouses claiming the same dependents when filing separately. Only one spouse may claim the dependents, and only one spouse may claim each child listed on line 3.
• Forgetting the attachment. You must complete and attach Form N-311 to your Hawaii income tax return to claim the credit.
• Entering cents on line 9. The form requires whole dollars only.

Questions people ask

Can I claim the credit if I have no income?

Yes. The instructions allow taxpayers with no income or no taxable income to claim the credit if they file an individual income tax return and meet the credit’s eligibility requirements.

Can I count my spouse?

You may count a spouse who is a qualified exemption if you file jointly. If you file separately, the spouse must not be filing a Hawaii return, must have had no income, and must not have been someone else’s dependent. References to a spouse also include a civil union partner.

Can a child born during 2025 qualify?

Yes. A child born during 2025 could qualify if the mother was physically present in Hawaii while pregnant and the days of gestation and life after birth total more than nine months during the tax year.

How is the credit calculated?

Use your filing status and the income on line 6 to find the credit per qualified exemption in the line 7 table. Add the number of people on lines 2 and 3, then multiply that total by the line 7 amount. Enter the result in whole dollars on line 9.

Official sources

• https://files.hawaii.gov/tax/forms/current/n311_i.pdf