The rule
Your qualified overtime deduction (the premium portion, capped at $12,500 or $25,000 joint) is reduced by $100 for every $1,000 your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $150,000 (single, head of household) or $300,000 (married filing jointly). The IRS worksheet on Schedule 1-A divides the excess by $1,000 and rounds down to a whole number, so $160,999 of MAGI costs you $1,000 of deduction, not $1,099.
Because the reduction is a flat $100 per step regardless of how much overtime you earned, the phase-out hits small deductions faster. A single filer with a $3,000 deduction loses all of it at $180,000. A single filer at the $12,500 cap keeps some deduction until $275,000.
Phase-out table
Assumes the full cap. If your overtime premium is less than the cap, subtract the same reduction from your actual amount.
| Single / HoH MAGI | Reduction | Max deduction left | Joint MAGI | Max deduction left (joint) |
| Up to $150,000 | $0 | $12,500 | Up to $300,000 | $25,000 |
| $160,000 | $1,000 | $11,500 | $320,000 | $23,000 |
| $175,000 | $2,500 | $10,000 | $350,000 | $20,000 |
| $200,000 | $5,000 | $7,500 | $400,000 | $15,000 |
| $225,000 | $7,500 | $5,000 | $450,000 | $10,000 |
| $250,000 | $10,000 | $2,500 | $500,000 | $5,000 |
| $275,000+ | $12,500 | $0 | $550,000+ | $0 |
What counts as "modified adjusted gross income"
For this deduction, MAGI is your adjusted gross income (Form 1040, line 11) with a few rarely used foreign-income exclusions added back. For almost everyone, MAGI = AGI. That means it's your income after pre-tax 401(k) and traditional IRA contributions, HSA contributions, student loan interest and the other above-the-line adjustments — but before the standard deduction and before the overtime deduction itself.
It includes everything on the return: both spouses' wages on a joint return, bonuses, the overtime pay itself (all of it, not just the premium), investment income, side-business profit, taxable Social Security, and capital gains. A big one-time capital gain in a year you worked a lot of overtime can wipe out the deduction.
Why two-earner households get squeezed
The joint threshold is exactly double the single one, so there's no marriage penalty on paper. But the deduction cap for a couple is also $25,000 total, not $12,500 each. Two nurses each earning $140,000 file jointly at $280,000 — under the $300,000 line, fine. Add a $30,000 bonus and they're at $310,000, losing $1,000 of deduction. Add a capital gain and it goes faster.
Levers that move you under the line
- Pre-tax 401(k)/403(b)/457 contributions. Every dollar reduces AGI. In 2026 the employee limit is $24,500 ($32,500 at 50+; higher catch-up at 60–63). Public-safety employees with a 457 plan can often contribute to both.
- Traditional IRA ($7,500 in 2026, plus catch-up), if deductible at your income.
- HSA contributions if you have a high-deductible health plan.
- Timing. If you're near a $1,000 step in December, deferring a bonus or a stock sale to January can keep $100 of deduction — sometimes more if it also keeps you in a lower bracket.
- Roth contributions don't help — they're after-tax and don't reduce AGI.
Each $1,000 step you cross is worth $100 of deduction, which is $22–24 of actual tax at the brackets where the phase-out lives. So this matters more for people near the $150,000/$300,000 line with a big deduction than for someone at $260,000 with $2,000 of overtime premium.
Two more rules that end the deduction outright
- Married filing separately gets nothing, at any income.
- No valid Social Security number (for you, or your spouse on a joint return) — no deduction.
Same rule for tips, different for cars and seniors
The tips deduction uses the identical $150,000/$300,000 phase-out with the same round-down rule, so a bartender who works overtime loses both deductions at the same pace. The car loan interest deduction is harsher: $200 per $1,000 over $100,000/$200,000, rounded up. The senior deduction uses a smooth 6% of income over $75,000/$150,000.
Run your numbers in the overtime calculator →
Frequently asked questions
What's the income limit for the overtime deduction?
Phase-out starts at $150,000 MAGI ($300,000 joint), $100 less per $1,000 over, gone at $275,000 ($550,000).
Is it my income or our income?
MAGI on the return. Joint filers combine both incomes against the $300,000 line.
Does the overtime pay itself count toward MAGI?
Yes, all of it. The deduction is subtracted after MAGI is measured.
Does a 401(k) contribution help?
Yes — pre-tax contributions reduce AGI and therefore MAGI. Roth contributions don't.
What if I'm $1 over a $1,000 step?
Rounded down, so being $1 over costs nothing extra; you need to cross the full $1,000.
Is there a head-of-household threshold?
Head of household uses the $150,000 single threshold.