Topic no. 455, Moving expenses for members of the Armed Forces and the Intelligence Community

If you're a member of the Armed Forces on active duty, you may be eligible to deduct unreimbursed moving expenses or exclude reimbursed moving expenses for you, your spouse, and your dependents if your move was due to a military order and incident to a permanent change of station or pursuant to a change of assignment which requires relocation or permanent change of station. Similarly, employees or new appointees of the intelligence community who are moving in 2026 or later may also be treated as if they are members of the Armed Forces for purposes of moving expenses.

Permanent change of station for military members – This includes a move from your home to your first post of active duty, a move from one permanent post of duty to another, and a move from your last post of duty to your home or to a nearer point in the United States. A move from the last post of duty must occur within 1 year of ending your active duty or within the period allowed under the Joint Travel Regulations. The expenses of a member’s spouse or dependent due to permanent change of station may also be eligible; refer to Publication 3, Armed Forces' Tax Guide.

Qualified moving expenses - You can deduct unreimbursed amounts and exclude reimbursed expenses from gross income if the amounts are reasonable for the circumstances of your move. Your eligible moving expenses include household goods, personal effects, storage and traveling expenses (including lodging) to your new home. You can’t deduct any expenses for meals.

Reporting moving expenses

Figure moving expenses on Form 3903, Moving Expenses and deduct as an adjustment to income on Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Form 1040-SR, U.S. Tax Return for Seniors, or Form 1040-NR, U.S. Tax Return for Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return (attach Schedule 1 (Form 1040), Additional Income and Adjustments to Income PDF PDF). However, Form 3903 is not required if you moved to a location outside the U.S. in an earlier year, are claiming only storage fees while you were away from the U.S., and any amount the government paid for the storage fees is included in box 1 of your Form W-2. Report the qualified storage fees directly on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 14, and enter “Storage” on the dotted line next to the amount.

You can't deduct any moving expenses covered by reimbursements from the government (or paid for directly by the government) that are excluded from your income.

Additional information

For more information, refer to Publication 3 and Can I deduct my moving expenses?