MAGI
MAGI phaseout for car loan interest ($100k / $200k)
Free VIN check · US assembly
Free VIN check — was it assembled in the US?
Paste the 17-character VIN. This reads NHTSA PlantCountry. It is a data check, not tax advice, and it does not decide whether any loan is deductible.
This page does not decide a return. AssemblyAlert never says a loan is deductible and never says a reader qualifies.
The IRS Working Families Tax Cuts deductions page says the car-loan interest deduction phases out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income over $100,000 ($200,000 for joint filers). The individuals and workers page uses the same thresholds.
Topic no. 505 says the deduction is subject to limitations based on your modified adjusted gross income.
Schedule 1-A computes modified adjusted gross income in Part I because all four additional deductions on that form have income phaseouts.
What it means for filers
Phaseout is a dollars gate. It can shrink or zero the $10,000 interest cap even when the vehicle and the loan otherwise look like they fit.
AssemblyAlert’s MAGI phaseout examples illustrate a $200 reduction for each $1,000 (or fraction) of MAGI over the IRS start, reaching $0 at $150,000 (single / most) and $250,000 (joint). That slope is an OBBBA-statute illustration, not a line from Topic 505 and not a prepared return. Confirm MAGI and the reduction with a preparer.
The interest estimator includes that same illustrated slider so you can see how the $10,000 line moves. It does not score your return.
Common misconceptions
- “Under $100k MAGI means I qualify.” No. MAGI is one gate. Leases, used vehicles, assembly, GVWR, dates, personal use, and the VIN still matter.
- “Joint $200k is a hard cliff.” The IRS pages say the deduction phases out over those starts. How fast it phases is a preparer question; this site’s $200-per-$1,000 chart is labeled as an illustration.
- “Schedule 1-A Part I is optional.” The IRS fact sheet says the Schedule 1-A deductions depend on MAGI calculated in Part I.
How AssemblyAlert tools relate
Read the illustrated examples, then use the calculator. Paste the VIN in the free checker for plant country. None of those tools compute MAGI.
Official citations
- IRS Working Families Tax Cuts — deductions
- IRS Working Families Tax Cuts — individuals and workers
- IRS Topic no. 505
- Schedule 1-A fact sheet
- Form 1040 Schedule 1-A (PDF) (Part I MAGI; Part IV car-loan interest / VIN)
- NHTSA vPIC VIN Decoder
Not tax advice. Owned by Record of Sale, LLC.