The quickest way to find your prior-year adjusted gross income is to look at line 11 of last year’s Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR.1Internal Revenue Service. Adjusted Gross Income If you don’t have the return itself, you can pull the number from your IRS online account or a free IRS transcript in a few minutes. And if none of that works, you can still e-file using an Identity Protection PIN, enter $0 in specific situations, or file on paper.
Check Line 11 of Last Year’s Return First
Your AGI sits on line 11 of Form 1040 and Form 1040-SR.1Internal Revenue Service. Adjusted Gross Income That’s the entire lookup if you kept a copy.
If you used tax software last year, log back into that same account. Most programs store prior returns and will auto-import the AGI when you start this year’s return with the same service. That handles the number without you having to type it in.
Use Your IRS Individual Online Account
If you can’t find the return, the IRS Individual Online Account shows your key return data on screen once you’ve verified your identity. Sign in or create an account at IRS.gov, get through identity verification, and the figures are there.2Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals
The same login also gives you instant access to your transcripts, which is the next stop if the account view isn’t enough.
Pull a Free IRS Transcript
The IRS offers two transcript types that carry your AGI, both free:
- A tax return transcript shows most line items from your original return as filed. It’s available for the current year and three prior years.
- A tax account transcript shows filing status, taxable income, and any changes made after the original filing. It’s available for up to nine prior years through your online account.3Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Types for Individuals and Ways to Order Them
You can view, print, or download either one instantly through your online account. If you can’t register for online access, request a transcript by mail or by calling 800-908-9946. Mailed transcripts take 5 to 10 calendar days.3Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Types for Individuals and Ways to Order Them
One timing catch: transcripts aren’t available the moment you file. For electronically filed returns, allow two to three weeks. For paper returns, six to eight weeks before the data shows up.4Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Availability If you just filed and need last year’s AGI, that’s fine; if you’re trying to pull the current year’s, wait.
When a Full Copy Is Worth Ordering
A transcript is enough for retrieving your AGI. If you actually need a photocopy of the original return with every attachment, file Form 4506. The fee is $30 per tax year, and processing takes up to 75 calendar days.5Internal Revenue Service. Form 4506 – Request for Copy of Tax Return For most people looking up an AGI, that’s slower and more expensive than it needs to be.
If You Still Can’t Get the Number, You Can Still File
The IRS uses your prior-year AGI as an identity check when you e-file. Enter it wrong and the return gets rejected.6Internal Revenue Service. Validating Your Electronically Filed Tax Return A rejection isn’t an audit or a penalty. It just means the IRS won’t accept the submission until the check passes. A few paths get you around it.
Enter $0 in Two Specific Situations
Use $0 as your prior-year AGI if either applies:
- You didn’t file a federal return last year.
- You filed last year, but the IRS hasn’t finished processing it.
This isn’t a trick. The IRS instructs taxpayers to enter $0 in these cases because there’s no AGI on file to match against.6Internal Revenue Service. Validating Your Electronically Filed Tax Return
Use an Identity Protection PIN Instead
An Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) is a six-digit number the IRS assigns for identity verification. When you have one, it replaces the AGI check when you e-file.7Internal Revenue Service. Get an Identity Protection PIN The IRS issues new IP PINs each year, and you can request one through your online account even if you’ve never been an identity theft victim. Once assigned, you have to include it on every return you file that calendar year.8Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions About the Identity Protection Personal Identification Number
If your AGI keeps triggering rejections, an IP PIN removes the guesswork about which number the IRS has on file for you.
Fall Back to Paper
Paper returns don’t go through the electronic identity check, so the AGI question doesn’t come up. Processing and any refund will take longer, but the return will be accepted.
Rejected for the “Wrong” AGI? Check This First
When an e-filed return is rejected for a prior-year mismatch, you can correct the AGI and resubmit, or enter a valid IP PIN instead and resubmit.9Internal Revenue Service. IND-031-04
The most common cause of a “wrong” AGI is using the number from an amended return. The IRS matches against the AGI from the original return you filed, not the corrected amount on any amendment. If you filed an amendment last year, try the AGI from the original filing first.
Joint Filers and Changed Filing Status
If you and your spouse filed jointly last year, you share one AGI. When each of you e-files this year, both should enter that identical joint figure for validation, regardless of who actually earned the income. This trips people up when one spouse had no income of their own; the joint AGI still applies to both.
If your filing status changed since last year, use whatever AGI appeared on the return you actually filed. The IRS matches against what’s in its system, not against your current situation.