Roth IRA limits for married filing separately

[Megatron]

A quick question for the Roth IRA gurus.
I'm getting married this year and was planning on continuing to file taxes separately after we are married. The reason being is that my soon to be wife has a perpetual family trust set up by her grandparents that requires a lot of paper work during tax time every year. she basically sends all her tax info to her parents who has a tax lawyer. And I don't want to get mingled in with all their family financial affairs but I think she's gets something like 30-50k distribution a year just for her part from the trust depending on how well the trust did that year. i know, wtf, right? we each make just barely below the limit of $112,000 a year so we both have a Roth IRA, and I want to continue to have one.
Reading the IRS Website http://www.irs.gov/publications/p590/ch02.html#en_US_2013_publink1000230988

married filing separately and you lived with your spouse at any
time during the year   
if you make $10,000 or more   you cannot contribute to a Roth IRA.

Is that correct? so if we filed separately, we both can't have a Roth IRA?

How does one get around that after you get married and your combine income would be too much to have a Roth IRA. would I have to resort to that  "Back door" Roth IRA?

just an FYI, we are both mustachians, although I'm a little more extreme than her but she's getting there. She agreed to go camping along the Pacific coast line in California for our honeymoon.

[Philociraptor]

That is correct, if you make above the limits you must use the backdoor method.  However, are you both maxing out your 401(k)'s? That may be able to decrease your MAGI enough to contribute, plus save on taxes.

[dandarc]

That is correct, if you make above the limits you must use the backdoor method.  However, are you both maxing out your 401(k)'s? That may be able to decrease your MAGI enough to contribute, plus save on taxes.

Love to see how they go from 110K each to under 10K ;).

OP - this is a cost of filing separately.  For you, not that big of a cost as the limits for filing jointly are not double the single limits anyway, so you might get hit by that anyway.  However, there is a pretty simple way around it - research backdoor Roth IRAs.

[Philociraptor]

Of course I say that assuming they would go ahead and file together.

[dandarc]

Of course I say that assuming they would go ahead and file together.

Yes - sorry about poking fun there (although if there is a way to do it, sure would like to know).  And OP should consider filing jointly - might not be as difficult as he thinks, even with the trust fund considerations.  Personally don't want to co-mingle our finances with either of our parents at all - valuing independence and all that.

[frugaliknowit]

Wow, that is really amazingly low!  I thought it was a mistake, but apparently not.  Just "back door" it.

[GizmoTX]

Trusts file separately & there's no commingling. Take a look at your wife's previous returns -- chances are it just has a K1 or other form to acknowledge what the trust is doing.