Student Loan Repayment Tax Credit: Student Loan Repayment Tax Credit (2025)
Maine · Maine Revenue Services · Used for tax years 2025
The 2025 Maine Student Loan Repayment Tax Credit Worksheet calculates a refundable credit for Maine resident and part-year resident individuals. It reports earned income, eligible education loan payments, and unused educational opportunity tax credit carryforwards, and is enclose
Who files this form
Use this worksheet to claim the 2025 Maine Student Loan Repayment Tax Credit if you made eligible education loan payments directly to the lender and/or have eligible unused educational opportunity tax credit (EOTC) amounts to carry forward.
For tax year 2025, a qualified individual must:
- Have earned an associate, bachelor’s, or graduate degree after 2007 from an accredited Maine or non-Maine community college, college, or university.
- Have been a Maine resident during the tax year.
- Have at least $13,712 in earned income during the tax year.
Only eligible loan payments made while you were a Maine resident qualify. The loans must have been part of the financial aid package for your degree.
When it's due
For the 2025 credit, unused EOTC carryforwards are subject to a 10-year carryforward limit. The worksheet also states that unused EOTC amounts may be claimed only for tax years beginning before January 1, 2027.
The supplied text does not state a filing due date for the 2025 worksheet.
What you'll need
If this is your first year claiming the credit and you have not already provided the documentation, include these items with your completed worksheet and Maine income tax return, Form 1040ME:
- A complete college transcript showing the degree name, classes completed, and date the degree was obtained.
- Documentation of the education loans that qualify for the credit.
- Proof of the actual loan payments you made directly to the lender during the tax year.
Maine Revenue Services may request additional supporting information before processing your return. In later years, it may request documentation of loan payments and employment status.
How to file
Enclose the completed worksheet with Form 1040ME.
- Enter your name and Social Security number, check your degree type, and provide your graduation date and the school’s state or country abbreviation.
- On line 1, enter your own earned income included in federal Form 1040, line 9. If it is less than $13,712, stop. You cannot claim the credit.
- On line 2, enter eligible payments you made directly to the lender during 2025.
- On line 3, enter eligible unused EOTC carryforwards from tax years 2015 through 2021, subject to the 10-year limit. Enter zero if this is your first year claiming the credit.
- Add lines 2 and 3 on line 4. On line 5, enter the smaller of line 4 or $2,500. Also enter that amount on Form 1040ME, Schedule A, line 5. The credit is subject to a $25,000 lifetime limit per qualified individual.
- Attach supporting documentation when required.
The supplied text does not provide a mailing address or e-file directions.
Common mistakes
- Including someone else’s earned income, including your spouse’s, on line 1.
- Including loan payments made by another person on line 2.
- Counting payments made while you were not a Maine resident.
- Counting payments refunded by the lender. If a refund affects a credit already claimed, you must amend your Maine return to reduce the credit.
- Treating a refinanced loan as eligible when it has been combined with debt other than education loans.
- Claiming payments on loans from a related person or a qualified employer plan, or on loans made under a contract purchased under a qualified employer plan.
- Leaving out required first-year supporting documentation when it has not previously been provided.
Questions people ask
How much is the 2025 credit?
The refundable credit equals eligible loan payments plus eligible unused EOTC carryforwards, up to $2,500 per qualified individual for 2025. The lifetime limit is $25,000. The one-time annual credit increase of up to $1,000 allowed for tax year 2022 or 2023 does not count against that lifetime limit.
Can both spouses claim the credit on a joint return?
Yes, if both are qualified individuals. Each spouse must complete a separate worksheet using their own earned income and eligible payments made directly to the lender.
Does my college have to be in Maine?
No. A degree from an accredited Maine or non-Maine community college, college, or university may qualify, provided the other requirements are met.
Can payments on a refinanced education loan qualify?
Yes, as long as the refinanced eligible loan remains separate from other debt, except other education loans.