Sorry guys, I'm a noob. When trying to get a rough estimate of my MAGI, do I subtract my 401k and 457 contributions?

for example, last year i made 119g but i also contributed 20g to my 457 and 401k. so am i automatically under the roth caps on MAGI?

I can't get a straight answer out of anybody on this. I hope you can help. thanks

ftp://ftp.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p590.pdf

See the explanation on page 60 and the worksheet on page 61 of IRS Publication 590, at the above link.

lol, you couldn't make it easy for me, huh? so the answer seems to be yes, i do subtract the 20g i contributed to my 401k and 457 funds.

am i right? please spell it out fo rme i'm not too bright

Sorry, referring you to the IRS worksheet IS the easy answer since the calculation of MAGI involves lots of details.

Your question lacked some critical information. I assume that you are asking about Roth contribution limits since the time for making Roth conversions for 2007 is gone. The MAGI limits depend on your filing status: single, married joint. etc. You really should read the relevant parts of Pub 590.

The place to start to figure MAGI is your AGI which already excludes any pre-tax 457/401k. So, if the "119g" you made last year is your AGI, then you do NOT deduct your employer plan contributions.

cool. i told you i wasn't too bright. thanks for spelling it out for me