Help with 2020 IRS Capital Loss Carryover Worksheet?

[jimsmith]

I'm confused about a few instructions on the 2020 Capital-Loss Carryover Worksheet:

Instruction for line 1:
“Enter the amount from your 2019 Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 11b….If the amount would have been a loss if you could enter a negative number on that line, enclose the amount in parentheses.”

On my 2019 1040 line 11b, I entered zero. So do they mean that if the subtraction produced a negative number, and per instructions you entered zero on line 11b--as I did instead of the negative number--that you should re-do the subtraction, and then enter that correct negative number on the worksheet line 1?

I don't recall ever having to do this--previous cap-loss carryover worksheet instructions involved simply copying numbers from previous year's return, not doing a re-calculation--

And worksheet instructions for line 4: "Enter the smaller of line 2 or line 3b."--problem: I do not see a line 3b. Is this simply a typo? They mean line 3?

[secondcor521]

I think you're correct in both cases.

So if your 2020 Form 1040 line 8b was $10,000, and your line 11a was $12,000, you would put ($2,000) on line 1 of the worksheet, not the $0 that was on your 2020 Form 1040 line 11b.  The ($2,000) would mean negative $2,000.

And I think the "3b" is a typo.  If you go back and look at the 2019 version of the worksheet, it says "line 3" in the same spot (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/i1040sd--2019.pdf).