German Pension Plan

[FrankO3]

Hello, I am retired and am receiving monthly payments of the Social Security equivalent from Germany. The payer is: Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund in Berlin. This is in addition to Social Security payments in the US as I have lived and worked in Germany prior to coming to the US.I just finished my taxes for 2022 using turbotax online and am confused. The system is asking for a form 1099-R and specifically for an EIN number. It appears that without the EIN number, I cannot e-file my taxes.

Is this a new requirement? I have filed this type of income before but was never asked to fill out additional forms. Di I possible use an incorrect line to report this income? Thank you

[DanaB27]

No, you do not enter the Rentenversicherung income as a Form 1099-R distribution.

Pensions from the German government are treated just like US social security payments reported on an SSA-1099 (Publication 915 2022). Enter the amount received as an SSA-1099 by following the steps below:

1. Open your return
2. Click "Federal Taxes" from the top of your screen
3. Click "Wages & Income"
4. Click "I'll choose what to work on"
5. Scroll down to “Retirement Plans and Social Security” and click "Start" next to "Social Security (SSA-1099, RRB-1099)" 
6. Answer “Yes” to “Did you receive any Social Security benefits?”
7. Select “Social Security benefits (Form SSA-1099)” and enter the amount in box 5

Since you are receiving US and German benefits you will need to add up the amounts before entering them.

[olga13824]

Does this also apply to a German Civil Servant Pension (also paid by the German government, but a different agancy)?

[PattiF]

The pension would be entered on a different form than the German Social Security. This would be entered as a 1099-R.

To report your state pension from Germany:

1. Login to your TurboTax Account 
2. In the income section, under Retirement
3. Select 1099-R”
4. Select "Change how I enter my form" on the "Let's import your tax info" screen
5. Select "Type it myself"
6. Continue through the questions until the "Do any of these situations apply to you?" screen select "I need to file a substitute 1099-R"
7. On the next page, click "Continue"
8. Fill in the boxes with your pension information.  For the Federal Tax ID, use "99-9999999" for Box 7, use Code 7.
9. Select Yes when asked if you want to prepare a substitute Form 4852.

@olga13824 

[JAA08]

Does the same apply if you are an American Living in Germany receiving both Social Security and the German equivelent of Social Security?  Add the 2 amounts together (using the exchange rate conversion) and enter in box 5.  Reading the publication 915 on Social Security it states that this is taxable in Germany.  Will Turbo Tax then set the Taxable amount to zero?

[FrankO3]

I would suggest you contact the German Social Security (Deutsche Rentenversicherung - Bund). They can tell you exactly how this works in your situation. Good Luck

[LeticiaF1]

Yes, the same applies, if you're a US citizen or resident, you need to report all of your income no matter where you live. 

There's a tax treaty between the US and Germany that allows Social Security benefits paid by Germany to US Citizens residing in Germany to be treated as...

To enter the income, since they are both the same type of income:

1. Open your tax return
2. Go to Social Security benefits
3. Add both amounts (using these exchange rates) and enter the amount as your Box 5 net benefits
4. After you enter the total amount received, the program will ask if you were a US citizen living abroad in one of the following countries. Answer yes, and the TurboTax will calculate the rest.  

See the images below for your reference:

@JAA08 

[JAA08]

Thanks for the very useful information.  It confirms my understanding of the tax law and also confirms that I had made the right decision to continue using Turbo Tax when my tax situation changed, despite the challenge to purchase the software in Germany now that CDs are no longer available.