What is the plan cost? What is the tax-free amount previously recovered?

[ColeenD3]

What is the plan cost? The "plan cost at annuity start date" refers to your total after-tax contributions in the plan, if applicable. If you did not make any after-tax contributions into these accounts, enter "0" (zero) in the plan cost entry. If you did make after-tax contributions and have a 1099-R, it may be listed in box 9b.

What is the tax-free amount previously recovered? The tax free portion of an annuity is essentially your cost basis in the  annuity.  As you receive distributions, some of them may go towards recovering your cost and those portions  are tax free. 

[SLynnG]

Hi! Just took over doing my parents' taxes. My mom started receiving a pension from CalSTRS in 1987. Box 2a in her 1099-R has been blank for as long as anyone can remember. Her accountant has been multiplying the amount in Box 1 by 92.26% to get the taxable amount. Nobody, including him, knows where he got that percentage. I would be happy to just use it, but TurboTax insists on knowing the plan cost at starting date. No one, including CalSTRS, has this information. What to do? Any help or workarounds appreciated!

[MarilynG1]

If you have no cost in your pension plan, your payments are fully taxable (which is usually the case).

Generally, you have no cost in your plan if you did not contribute any after-tax funds.

Someone must have figured out for your mom (probably the first year she was reporting pension income), that she contributed a bit of her own $ to the plan to arrive at the 92.6% taxable amount.

Her pension payor should be able to tell you that, though. If not, you can indicate that the amount is Box 1 is the taxable amount (as it is in most cases). 

Is there an amount in Box 5 of her 1099-R?

If so, that could be the portion of her own funds recovered in 2021.  What is the ratio of that amount to the Box 1 amount?  If it's  92.26%, you know where that came from!

However, TurboTax can't know (or calculate) what her original contribution amount was. I'm sure she doesn't have her 1987 tax return.

Click this link for more info on Pension Payments.

Here's steps on How to Enter 1099-R.