Deduct foreign self employment pension contributions

[raggedyak]

I immigrated to the US in 2023, obtaining my green card via marriage (my wife is a US citizen and resident).

Prior to arriving in the US, I worked in the UK as a limited company contractor. For US purposes, I will be filing this income as self employment income and treating the UK limited company as a foreign disregarded entity.

I made a contribution to my UK pension plan from my UK limited company. In the UK and in the US this is deductible from pre-tax total income.

I can't see how to deduct this in TurboTax. I have found the self-employment pension deduction options but they are limited to US options (solo 401(k), SEP, SIMPLE, etc.) - there is no option for non-US pension.

How can I handle this in TurboTax?

My inclination is to deduct it and label it as a contribution to a SIMPLE IRA, but my worry here is that I don't actually have one and my understanding is that a SIMPLE IRA is supposed to be registered with the IRS. So I don't want to cause confusion or make a false declaration.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[DavidD66]

It shouldn't matter which type of retirement savings plan you indicate that you contributed to.  There are multiple choices because they all have different rules to determine how much you can contribute.  The program asks so that it can calculate the maximum contribution and/or determine the amount that you contributed is allowed.  The amount of the contribution then flows to line 16 on p.2 of Schedule 1 (Form 1040), and from then it is included on line 10 of Form 1040.  If your contribution to your UK pension plan is a qualified contribution, then that is where it should be reported.  You should make sure that the amount you put for your contribution meets the guidelines for the type of plan you indicate. 

[raggedyak]

Thanks, that's useful and I appreciate the quick response.

I will of course check that any deduction I elect is allowable in the context of the UK-US tax treaty and my personal circumstances, etc.