2022 Saver's Credit Income Limit
For 2022, the Saver's Credit Income Limit is $68,000 (Maximum adjusted gross income, married taxpayers filing a joint return), $51,000 (Maximum adjusted gross income, taxpayers filing as head of household) and $34,000 (Maximum adjusted gross income, all other taxpayers).
| Item | Married taxpayers filing a joint return | Taxpayers filing as head of household | All other taxpayers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum adjusted gross income | $68,000 | $51,000 | $34,000 |
Effective 2022-01-01Source: Notice 2021-61 (IRS)Verified 2026-08-29
Compared with 2021
| Item | 2021 | 2022 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum adjusted gross income, married taxpayers filing a joint return | $66,000 | $68,000 | +$2,000 (+3.0%) |
| Maximum adjusted gross income, taxpayers filing as head of household | $49,500 | $51,000 | +$1,500 (+3.0%) |
| Maximum adjusted gross income, all other taxpayers | $33,000 | $34,000 | +$1,000 (+3.0%) |
Who it applies to
Taxpayers who make qualified retirement contributions and claim the retirement savings contributions credit (Saver's Credit) under section 25B of the Internal Revenue Code for tax year 2022.
What changed this year, and why
For 2022, the maximum adjusted gross income limits for the retirement savings contributions credit (Saver's Credit) under section 25B increased from their 2021 levels. For married taxpayers filing a joint return, the maximum AGI is $68,000. For taxpayers filing as head of household, the maximum AGI is $51,000. For all other taxpayers, the maximum AGI is $34,000. These limits determine who qualifies for the credit based on income.
Common questions
- What is the Saver's Credit?
- The Saver's Credit (retirement savings contributions credit) is a tax credit for eligible taxpayers who make qualified retirement contributions. The maximum adjusted gross income (AGI) to qualify depends on filing status.
- What if my income exceeds the maximum?
- Taxpayers with income above the limit for their filing status do not qualify for the Saver's Credit. For 2022, the limits are $68,000 for married filing jointly, $51,000 for head of household, and $34,000 for all other taxpayers.
- How do the 2022 limits compare to prior years?
- For 2021, the maximum AGI was $66,000 for married filing jointly, $49,500 for head of household, and $33,000 for all other taxpayers. All three limits increased for 2022.
Three things that disqualify you even under the income limit
Even if your income is below the limit, you cannot claim the Saver's Credit if any of three conditions apply to the person who made the retirement contribution. First, that person must not have been born after January 1, 2005 - meaning the credit is unavailable for contributions made by someone who is too young. Second, the person must not be claimed as a dependent on someone else's 2022 tax return. Third, the person must not have been a student during any part of five calendar months in 2022. Being a student means enrolled full-time at a school (including technical, trade, or mechanical schools) or taking a full-time on-farm training course from a school or government agency. Online-only schools, correspondence schools, and on-the-job training courses do not count. If any of these three disqualifying conditions applies, no credit is allowed regardless of how much was contributed or how low the taxpayer's income may be.
The person(s) who made the qualified contribution or elective deferral (a) was born after January 1, 2005; (b) is claimed as a dependent on someone else’s 2022 tax return; or (c) was a student.
Form 8880 (2022), Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (IRS)
The credit rate falls in steps as income rises
Form 8880, line 9, tells you to look up the applicable decimal amount from a rate table based on your adjusted gross income and filing status. The credit rate is not a single flat percentage - it drops in steps as income rises. For single filers, married filing separately, and qualifying surviving spouses, the top rate applies to incomes up to $34,000, and the rate then steps down through higher brackets until the credit is no longer available for anyone above $34,000. For heads of household, the rate steps down across brackets up to $51,000, beyond which no credit is allowed. For married couples filing jointly, the brackets extend further, stepping down up to $68,000 before the credit ends entirely. In practice, the closer your income is to the maximum limit for your filing status, the smaller the decimal rate you receive and the smaller your resulting credit. If the table gives you a decimal of nothing, you cannot claim the credit at all.
9 Enter the applicable decimal amount from the table below.
Form 8880 (2022), Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (IRS)
Only the first $2,000 of contributions counts
Form 8880, line 6, requires each taxpayer - and each spouse on a joint return - to enter the smaller of the amount on line 5 or $2,000. Line 5 is the net contribution figure after subtracting any recent retirement distributions from the total of IRA and employer-plan contributions. This means the credit is never based on more than $2,000 of contributions per person, no matter how much was actually saved during the year. If a married couple files jointly, each spouse gets a separate $2,000 cap in column (a) and column (b), so the return can reflect contributions from both individuals, each subject to the same per-person limit. If line 5 is zero or negative because recent distributions exceeded contributions, line 6 is also zero and the credit cannot be claimed at all.
6 In each column, enter the smaller of line 5 or $2,000 . . . . . . . . . . 6
Form 8880 (2022), Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (IRS)
Recent withdrawals cut the contributions you can count
Form 8880, line 4, requires you to report certain distributions received after 2019 and before the due date (including extensions) of your 2022 tax return. These distributions - from IRAs, employer retirement plans, ABLE accounts, and other qualified retirement arrangements - are subtracted from your total contributions on line 5. The result is your net eligible contribution amount for the year. If the distributions exceed contributions, line 5 becomes zero and the credit is eliminated entirely. The purpose of this rule is to prevent taxpayers from withdrawing retirement funds and then claiming a credit for new savings that simply replaced the withdrawn money. For married couples filing jointly, both spouses' distributions must be included on line 4. There is an exception: if you and your spouse did not file jointly in the year a distribution was received, that spouse's distribution is not counted against your credit.
4 Certain distributions received after 2019 and before the due date (including extensions) of your 2022 tax return (see instructions). If married filing jointly, include both spouses’ amounts in both columns. See instructions for an exception . . . 4
Form 8880 (2022), Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (IRS)
The credit cannot exceed the tax you owe
Form 8880, line 11, limits the credit to your tax liability using the Credit Limit Worksheet found in the instructions. The worksheet calculates the difference between your total tax (Form 1040, line 18) and certain other nonrefundable credits claimed on Schedule 3. That difference is entered on line 11 of Form 8880. The final credit on line 12 is the smaller of the preliminary credit amount (line 10, which is your eligible contributions multiplied by the applicable decimal rate) or the amount on line 11. This means the saver's credit is nonrefundable - it can reduce your tax to zero but cannot create or increase a refund beyond the taxes you owe. If the Credit Limit Worksheet shows zero or less, you cannot take the credit at all and should not file Form 8880.
11 Limitation based on tax liability. Enter the amount from the Credit Limit Worksheet in the instructions 11
Form 8880 (2022), Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (IRS)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
Notice 2021-61 (IRS)
- Maximum adjusted gross income, married taxpayers filing a joint return
The adjusted gross income limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(A) for determining the retirement savings contributions credit for married taxpayers filing a joint return is increased from $39,500 to $41,000; the limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(B) is increased from $43,000 to $44,000; and the limitation under sections 25B(b)(1)(C) and 25B(b)(1)(D) is increased from $66,000 to $68,000.
- Maximum adjusted gross income, taxpayers filing as head of household
The adjusted gross income limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(A) for determining the retirement savings contributions credit for taxpayers filing as head of household is increased from $29,625 to $30,750; the limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(B) is increased from $32,250 to $33,000; and the limitation under sections 25B(b)(1)(C) and 25B(b)(1)(D) is increased from $49,500 to $51,000.
- Maximum adjusted gross income, all other taxpayers
The adjusted gross income limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(A) for determining the retirement savings contributions credit for all other taxpayers is increased from $19,750 to $20,500; the limitation under section 25B(b)(1)(B) is increased from $21,500 to $22,000; and the limitation under sections 25B(b)(1)(C) and 25B(b)(1)(D) is increased from $33,000 to $34,000.