The foreign income exclusion only applies to income earned while you were living and working abroad, so since you received the pension distribution when you were domiciled in the US, it would not be considered foreign earned income in my opinion.
Since the residency tax is based on income, it would be allowable for the foreign tax credit.
I read the California safe harbor regulations and it applies to residents who are away for a period of 546 consecutive days. However, you were clearly not a resident of California for the first part of 2020, so you will file as a part-year resident and as such your tax will be calculated based on a ratio of the income you earned during the time you lived in California versus your total income. So, you will not pay much California tax on the income you earned in Japan.
**Say "Thanks" by clicking the thumb icon in a post
**Mark the post that answers your question by clicking on "Mark as Best Answer"
