Why doesn't TurboTax simply fix their substitute form 1099-R so that income from a foreign pension can be reported without using a fake TIN or entering the income as 'miscellaneous'? The IRS states that NO TIN should be entered on a substitute 1099-R when the pension income is from a foreign source. The field for TIN should simply be left blank. When the foreign pension income is not all taxable (because the recipient has a cost basis in the pension), the IRS requires reporting of the Gross and Net pension income and the remaining cost basis each year - not just reporting the net income as 'miscellaneous'. But Turbo Tax perpetually refuses to cooperate with e-Filing when the substitute 1099-R's TIN field is blank.
Turbo Tax's continued failure to conform to IRS directions leaves the Turbo Tax user with the choice of either filing a return that violates these rules or filing a paper return, which the IRS is no longer staffed to process without flagging the return as 'Not Filed' because the IRS can't process paper in a timely manner. Entering the foreign pension income as 'miscellaneous' so that Turbo Tax will e-file the return is in violation of IRS reporting directions when the foreign pension income is not all taxable because the recipient has a cost basis in her pension.
TurboTax has refused to address this problem for many years, despite annual feedback from users with the same problem reported above. Why not just fix Turbo Tax so it follows IRS directions?
I personally am sick and tired of wasting time every year asking Turbo Tax to fix this problem and then trying to file my return when another year rolls by and the problem remains.
The 2020 tax year was a watershed for me. After timely filing a paper return for the 2020 tax year because Turbo Tax cannot support e-filing a return that follows IRS directions, I dealt with months of fallout when the IRS and later Social Security (IRMAA) struggled to catch up processing the data on my 'unfiled' 2020 return. Exasperated by both Turbo Tax and the IRS, I now just follow the crowd enter a fake TIN on the foreign pension's substitute 1099-R. Pathetic!
Turbo Tax may value my feedback, but year after year Turbo Tax never does anything about it. Thoughts and Prayers…. Hearts and Flowers.... BS
