Fun With 1099-Rs

Financial Planning Tax Strategies
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Short version: I was missing a 1099-R and did not realize it. I used TurboTax to file both my Federal and State. Federal was accepted. State rejected because they saw what was missing. I now have the information from the missing form! Now I have to go back into TT and, I am guessing, send a revised Federal.

Long version:

I receive two pensions, one from the employer I retired from, the other from the company that owned my employer a few ownership changes back. I received two 1099-R forms, one for each pension. I entered it all into TurboTax. I e-filed. Federal was accepted. State (CT) was not, with a message about differences with 1099.

Researching things I could see that the 1099-R from the long-ago owner was missing dollars from all three: gross, net, and state withholding. Looking at the direct bank deposits, the first two came from a different source than the last ten. The 1099-R I have for that pension worked out to nine months worth when the smoke had cleared.

The contact information I had for that pension was to the outfit that made the first three payments. I visited their web site, where I found that it was NOT possible to simply download a copy of the form. Nope, I had to request a copy be mailed to my address on record, please allow up to two weeks. It showed my address on record correctly. There was also a phone number to call. I called.

The wonderful lady at the other end found my missing 1099-R, with exactly the difference between the one I had and the correct total. No, I could not download it. No, they could not email it. They could fax it. (Fax?) Or they could mail it; please allow two weeks for mail service.

The wonderful lady at the other end asked for and received permission to read it to me. We went, box by box, and I typed it all down. In the process we even found the root of the problem. The box with my name and address had my old address. My old address that changed in 2020. They KNEW my correct address, it showed when I asked for a hard copy to be mailed to me. They KNEW my correct address, as the outfit that took over managing the pension had it and used it. But on the form it was my old address.

Anyway I have the information I need to try to patch things up.

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I made the same error you made when I lived in Tennessee - which does not have a state income tax. The Feds ‘saw’ I had neglected to include a 1099 and recalculated my taxes for me. Sent me a nice letter saying I could accept their recalculation for submit to an audit to show why they were wrong.

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I suppose it is normal that I want to strangle TurboTax.

I was missing a 1099-R. I filed without it. The federal return was accepted. The state (CT) return was rejected. I got the information for the missing 1099-R. I added it to the federal return. I added some of the same information to the state return that I was told was missing. I filed e-filed the federal and return again as an amended return. It was accepted. I also refiled the state return; since it had been rejected I assumed it was not submitted as amended but as new. The state return rejected again.

Now I get into TurboTax and it offers me the chance to fix my state return. I accept that, and the next screen is E-file Your Federal Return for FREE. WTF? My amended federal return was accepted, I don’t want to mess with it. I just want to deal with the state.

Yes, I understand nobody here is in a position to help with TT. I’m just blowing off a bit of steam.

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I suppose it is normal that I want to strangle TurboTax.

Software can be very frustrating. There are times when there is a desire to inflict pain on software but it doesn’t have any feelings to hurt.

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