I was fortunate enough to retire at 53 and my company offered a pension that I could begin taking payments at 55. The pension was not something I had to pay into and it is from the company (not an IRA or 401K). As I receive payments that are the same for every month for the rest of my life, will I be liable for the early distribution tax penalty of 10% until I am 59 1/2 or will I be able to claim an exception that I am receiving a "series of substantially equal payments?" It is not clear to me if this penalty only applies to IRA and 401K distributions or if pension payments are also subject to the additional tax. Does a pension with the same payment every month automatically meet the standard to be considered a SEPP?
I have not received a 1099-R yet since I have been retired so I am not sure how my 1099-R Box 7 will be coded with a 1 for Early Distribution, no known exception or with a code 2 for Early Distribution, exception applies. If the company uses a code 1, do I just fill out the form 5329 stating that I should have the SEPP exception?
