Common questions about Forms 8936/8910 Vehicle Credits in Lacerte

In this article, you can find information about entering and generating vehicle credits in Lacerte.

Use the Clean Vehicle Credit section of Screen 34, General Business & Vehicle Credits to enter information for vehicle credits.

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Understanding Vehicle Credit Forms

In Lacerte, vehicle credits are primarily entered in the Clean Vehicle Credit section of Screen 34, General Business & Vehicle Credits.

• Form 8936, Qualified Plug-in Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit (also referred to as Clean Vehicle Credit) is used for qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicles.
• Form 8834, Qualified Electric Vehicle Credit is distinct from Form 8936.
• Form 8910, Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit, is also an option for alternative motor vehicles.

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Generating Form 8936, Clean Vehicle Credit

For all tax modules, begin by entering the Part I: Vehicle Details and then proceed by answering the questions presented on the input screen in order. Then follow the steps for the relevant tax module:

Beginning in tax year 2025:

Taxpayers can't claim clean vehicle credits for new, previously owned, or commercial clean vehicles that they acquired after September 30, 2025. See the IRS instructions here for more information.

Important Updates for Tax Year 2024:

• For vehicles placed in service after December 31, 2023, the seller is required to file a seller report through the IRS Energy Credits Online (ECO) portal.
• If your client elects to transfer the credit amount to the dealer for vehicles placed in service after 2023, you must file Form 8936 and Schedule A (Form 8936) with the return for the tax year in which the vehicle was placed in service.
• If using the Elective Payment option, a pre-filing registration number is required by the IRS before filing the tax return on Form 3800.

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Entering Form 8936 in the Individual Module

1. Go to Screen 34, General Business and Vehicle Credits
2. Scroll down or use the bottom left panel to select the Clean Vehicle Credits (8936) section.
3. For Tax Year 2024, enter the Modified Adjusted Gross Income (this is a required field).
4. Complete all fields in the Vehicle Details subsection, including Year, Make, Model, Vehicle identification number (VIN), and Date placed in service.
5. Continue by answering the questions presented in this section in the order indicated by your selections.
6. If Part II is required, an entry for the tentative credit amount is needed to generate the form.

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Entering Form 8936 in the Partnership Module

1. Go to Screen 20, Credits, then select Screen 20.7, Clean Vehicle Credits (8936).
2. If this credit is related to a business activity, in the Credits section, enter the Form (Ctrl+T) using the dropdown, and the Activity name or number (Ctrl+T). If not related to a business activity, proceed to step 3.
3. Locate the Clean Vehicle Credit (8936) section and begin by entering the Part I: Vehicle Details.
4. Continue by answering the questions presented on Screen 20.7 in order.
5. If Part II is needed, an entry is required for the tentative credit amount to generate the form.

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Entering Form 8936 in the Corporate Module

1. Go to Screen 28, General Business Credits (3800), then using the top left panel, locate Screen 28.1, Clean Vehicle Credits (8936).
2. This form will not generate unless there are entries for the Cost of other basis of the vehicle and Incremental cost of the vehicle.
3. Begin by entering the Part I: Vehicle Details.
4. Continue by answering the questions presented on Screen 28.1 in order.

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Entering Form 8936 in the S-Corporation Module

1. Go to Screen 26.7, Credits, and then select Clean Vehicle Credits (8936).
2. If this credit is related to a business activity, in the Credits section, enter the Form (Ctrl+T) using the dropdown, and the Activity name or number (Ctrl+T).
3. Locate the Clean Vehicle Credit (8936) section and begin by entering the Part I: Vehicle Details.
4. For qualified four-wheeled plug-in electric vehicles, if the manufacturer has provided the tentative credit, you may enter the Tentative credit [Override] field and leave the Kilowatt hour capacity (x.xxx) field blank.

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Entering Form 8936 for Tax Year 2022 and Earlier

1. Go to the Input Return tab.
2. From the left of the screen, select Credits and choose General Business and Vehicle Cr..
3. From the top of the screen, select Vehicle.
4. Scroll down to the Clean Vehicle Credits (8936) section.
5. Enter a 2 in the field 1=alternative motor vehicle (8910), 2=plug-in electric drive motor vehicle (8936).
6. Complete the following fields in the Vehicle Information subsection: Date placed in service, Vehicle identification number (VIN), Year (e.g., 2016), and Model.
7. Under the Clean Vehicle Credits subsection:
   • For the Two-Wheeled plug-in electric vehicle subsection, enter the Cost of two-wheeled vehicle.
   • For the At least Four-Wheeled plug-in electric vehicle subsection, enter the Kilowatt hour capacity (x.xxx) and Tentative credit [O].

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Entering Vehicle Credit as a Passthrough or Business Activity (TY 2022 and Earlier)

Follow these steps to enter vehicle credit information as a passthrough or business activity:

1. From the left of the screen, select Credits and choose General Business and Vehicle Cr..
2. Under the Credits section, select the type of Form (e.g., Schedule C, Schedule E (rental/royalty), Schedule F/Form 4835, Schedule E (partnership), Schedule E (S corporation), or Schedule E (estate or trust)).
3. Select the specific Activity name or number for this credit. You can add additional activities by selecting the plus sign (+) at the top of the screen.
4. From the top of the screen, select Vehicle.
5. Scroll down to the Clean Vehicle Credit section.
6. Under the Vehicle Information subsection, enter the Section 179 deduction, if applicable.
7. Under the Business or Investment Use Percentage subsection, enter information in the applicable fields: Total mileage, Business mileage, and Number of months of business/investment use (if not 12).
8. The plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit from passthroughs uses code 240.
9. Follow the general instructions for your specific vehicle type as detailed in the Entering Form 8936 for Tax Year 2022 and Earlier section.

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Maximum Credit Calculation and Carryovers

The credit calculated on Form 8936 will flow to Form 3800, General Business Credits. The allowable amount of the credit for the current year may be limited by other tax calculations. If any portion of the credit is not allowed in the current year, you can verify on the General Info form that the credit will carry over to the next tax year's return.

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