Why am I being taxed twice the amount I am supposed to be paying on for a disaster 401k withdrawal?

[terra_prince]

We took out one lump sum in 2020 and chose to pay taxes on it over 3 years.  I noticed on my return that the "taxable amount" is double what we are paying on and is making the amount we owe significantly higher than we expected.  Is this correct?  Or is there something wrong in the system and I need to amend?

[AmyC]

No, the final 1/3 should be showing on your tax return.

If you have already filed your return, you will need to amend it. 

See: 

• how to file an amended return. - have to scroll down and open for your software type to see current year information.
• I need to amend my state return.

[terra_prince]

Okay, just to be sure: in the section for income box 5a it has the correct amount we are claiming for the 1/3 we are paying on, box 5b is double that amount.  Is 5b only for the 5a amount or our whole income?  And if so- where did it get the amount from if I never put in any additional amounts?

[LindaS5247]

Box 5a would be your total pensions distributions from all Forms 1099-R's, Box 1.  5b would be the total of your taxable pensions, generally Box 2a of your Forms 1099-R's,

Your (1/3 portion) of your COVID Disaster Distribution is reported on Form 8915-F and flows to line 5b of your Form 1040.

If you have no other pension income your 5b should not be twice that of your 1/3 COVID Distribution.  Does your Form 8915-F reflect the correct amount?  You can check this by previewing your Form 8915-F.  Line 15 of this Form should be your 1/3 final COVID Disaster Distribution.

You didn't enter your COVID Disaster Distribution on a Form 1099-R, and have it included twice because it was carried forward in TurboTax from last year?  

I suggest previewing your Form 1040 and looking at Form 8915-F to make sure the right amount is on line 15.

To preview your 1040 if using TurboTax Online:

You can view your entire return or just your 1040 form before you e-file:

1. Sign in to your TurboTax account
2. Open or continue your return
3. Select Tax Tools from the menu (if you don't see this, select the menu icon in the upper-left corner)
4. With the Tax Tools menu open, you can then:
   • Preview your entire return: Select Print Center and then Print, save or preview this year's return (you may be asked to register or pay first)
   • View only your 1040 form: Select Tools. Next, select View Tax Summary in the pop-up, then Preview my 1040 in the left menu

You can preview your return in the TurboTax CD/Download software by following these steps:

1. With your return open in TurboTax, select Preview from the File menu at the top. (If you don't see "Preview," open your return, not just the program).
2. In the pop-up window, choose the set of forms you wish to see (all official forms, specific forms, etc.) and select Preview.
3. Scroll down to view all the forms if you chose to preview multiple forms.