I guess I have a poor understanding in the details of the FEIE. I understand I get to pay no federal income taxes while I'm out here. And I want to milk that for all it's worth.
The FEIE only affects income made outside the US, so conversions aren't excluded. The way I've read it is if you exceed the FEIE you pay your marginal tax on it. I'm "exceeding" the FEIE by having US income. The way I understood it, is your deductions and exemptions still come into play first, so I wouldn't have taxes until after that, then I pay at the 25% rate.
My coworker has been an expat much longer than I have, and said I'd have to pay the 25% rate. He's been wrong before, as have I. He's even done a Roth conversion maybe a decade ago.
I've never actually filled out a 1040 before, I've always used TurboTax. That sounds like a bad thing to say...
I won't get my W-2 for another month or so, but I know my total from my last pay stub, so I can use that, then delete it when my W-2 comes in. I'll let you know how it works out.
Thanks for the help!