What’s Covered on Lines 59–63?

These lines collect a mix of energy, insurance, and preservation credits. Each has its own form, its own eligibility rules, and its own cap. Here’s what you’re looking at:

• Solar energy system equipment credit — 25% of qualified solar energy system costs, up to $5,000 (claimed on Form IT-255)
• Long-term care insurance credit — 20% of premiums paid for qualifying long-term care policies (claimed on Form IT-249)
• Clean heating fuel credit — credit for purchasing bioheat or other clean heating fuel for your primary residence (claimed on Form IT-241)
• Historic homeownership rehabilitation credit — 20% of qualified rehabilitation expenditures for historic homes, up to $50,000 (claimed on Form IT-238)
• Other miscellaneous credits — various niche credits that change periodically as the legislature adds or sunsets programs

If none of these apply to you, move on. But read the solar section below before you skip it — more people qualify than realize it.

Solar Energy System Credit: The Big One

This is the credit pulling the most traffic into Lines 59-63. New York offers a credit equal to 25% of the cost of a qualified solar energy system installed on your primary residence, authorized under NY Tax Law Section 606(g-1). The maximum credit is $5,000, which means the full credit kicks in on a system costing $20,000 or more.

The credit is non-refundable but can be carried forward for up to five years. So if you don’t owe enough state tax this year to absorb the full $5,000, you can use the remainder in future years. That carryforward makes it more useful than most non-refundable credits on the IT-201.

A few things to know. The system has to be on your primary residence — rental properties and second homes don’t qualify. You need to be the one who purchased and owns the system; leased solar panels don’t count (the leasing company gets the credit, not you). And the credit stacks with the federal solar investment tax credit under IRC Section 25D, which covers 30% of the system cost with no dollar cap. Between the two, a $25,000 solar installation generates $7,500 in federal credit plus $5,000 in state credit — $12,500 in tax credits total, cutting the effective cost nearly in half.

You claim the credit on Form IT-255.

Long-Term Care Insurance Credit

If you pay premiums for a qualifying long-term care insurance policy, New York gives you a credit equal to 20% of those premiums. There’s no dollar cap on the credit itself — it’s simply 20% of whatever you paid. For a couple each paying $3,000 a year in LTC premiums, that’s $1,200 in state credits.

The policy has to meet New York’s definition of a qualifying long-term care insurance contract. Most standard LTC policies sold through licensed insurers qualify, but hybrid life/LTC products might not. Check with your insurer if you’re not sure.

This credit is non-refundable and is claimed on Form IT-249. There’s no carryforward, so if your tax liability is already zero from household credits, the earned income credit, and other credits higher on the form, the LTC credit provides no benefit for the year.

Here’s the part that makes you think: long-term care insurance is expensive, and a lot of people drop their policies because the premiums keep rising. But between the 20% state credit and any tax deduction you might get on the federal side (if you’re itemizing and meet the medical expense threshold per IRS Publication 502), the after-tax cost of the policy is lower than the sticker price suggests. It’s worth running those numbers before canceling a policy.

Clean Heating Fuel Credit

This credit applies to the purchase of bioheat fuel (a blend of biodiesel and conventional heating oil) used in your primary residence. The credit is typically $0.20 per gallon for bioheat with a blend of at least B6 (6% biodiesel), scaling up for higher blends. For a household that uses 800 gallons of B20 bioheat in a winter, that’s roughly $160.

It’s a small credit, and most homeowners don’t even know it exists. If your heating oil company delivers bioheat (which is increasingly common in the Northeast), ask them for a statement showing gallons and blend percentage. You might be sitting on a credit you didn’t know about.

The credit is claimed on Form IT-241 and is non-refundable.

Historic Homeownership Rehabilitation Credit

This credit is for homeowners who rehabilitate a historic home that’s their primary residence. The credit is 20% of qualified rehabilitation expenditures, with a maximum credit of $50,000. The property has to be in a registered historic district or individually listed on the State or National Register of Historic Places.

The rules are strict. You need pre-approval from the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) before you start work. The rehabilitation has to follow the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. And the expenditures have to exceed a minimum threshold (generally $5,000 or 5% of the property’s adjusted basis, whichever is greater).

Not many individual filers claim this one, but for homeowners in historic districts — common in parts of Brooklyn, the Hudson Valley, and upstate cities like Albany and Buffalo — a $250,000 renovation that qualifies could generate a $50,000 credit. That’s a significant number, and it’s worth the paperwork if you’re already planning the work.

Claimed on Form IT-238.

Other Credits That Show Up Here

New York periodically adds and sunsets smaller credits that land on Lines 59-63. Some you might encounter:

• Farm workforce retention credit — for agricultural employers who retain H-2A workers
• Conservation easement credit — for landowners who grant qualified conservation easements
• Brownfield redevelopment credits — individual shares from pass-through entities that cleaned up contaminated sites

These are rare for typical individual filers. If any apply to you, your K-1 from the entity or the specific program will identify the credit and the form required.

Common Mistakes on Lines 59–63

The solar credit generates the most errors. People claim it for leased systems (the leasing company, not you, gets the credit). Others try to claim it for a vacation home or rental property. And some forget that systems installed on condos or co-ops have special rules — you claim only your proportionate share.

For the LTC credit, the most common mistake is claiming it without checking whether the policy qualifies under New York’s specific definition. Some newer hybrid life insurance/LTC products don’t meet the standard.

The historic rehab credit trips people up on timing. You have to get pre-approval from the State Historic Preservation Office before starting the work. Retroactive applications are generally denied, and that $50,000 credit evaporates if you didn’t follow the process.

And across all these credits: forgetting that they’re non-refundable. If the PTET credit and child care credit already wiped out your state tax, a non-refundable credit on Lines 59-63 adds nothing (unless it has carryforward, like the solar credit does).

How Lines 59–63 Fit Into Your Total Tax Picture

These credits are applied near the end of the IT-201’s credit stack, after the household credit, resident credit, other credits (Lines 49-51), child care credit, EIC, college tuition credit, and PTET credit. By the time you get here, many filers’ tax liability is already at or near zero, which limits the usefulness of non-refundable credits.

The solar credit’s five-year carryforward gives it staying power that the others don’t have. If you installed a $25,000 system and your credit is $5,000, you can spread that across multiple tax years until it’s fully absorbed. That’s a significant advantage over credits that expire unused at the end of the year.

Sources & References

• NY IT-201 Instructions — Lines 59-63 Additional Credits
• NY Tax Law Section 606 — Tax Credits (Solar, LTC, and Others)
• Form IT-255 Instructions — Solar Energy System Equipment Credit
• IRC Section 25D — Federal Residential Clean Energy Credit
• NY State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO)