Tag Archives: federal tax withholding calculator

Taxes and Your NYSLRS Pension

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Tax season is coming.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will begin accepting tax returns later this month. In late January, NYSLRS will mail tax information to retirees (and some members and beneficiaries) so they can file their taxes.

1099-Rs

NYSLRS pensions are not subject to New York State income taxes, but they are subject to federal taxes. By January 31, we’ll mail 1099-R tax forms to nearly half a million retirees and beneficiaries. We also mail 1099-Rs to beneficiaries who received taxable income from NYSLRS in 2018, members who have taken taxable NYSLRS loans or have defaulted on their loans, and those who ended their membership and withdrew their contributions in 2018.

A 1099-R shows:

  • The total benefit paid to you in a calendar year.
  • The taxable amount of your benefit.
  • The amount of taxes withheld from your benefit.

If you don’t get your 1099-R by the second week of February, you can request a reprint. This year, reprints will be available for calendar years 2016, 2017 and 2018.

1099-R Interactive Tutorial

1099-r tax form tutorial screenshot

Understanding your 1099-R Tutorial

If you have questions about the information on the form, we feature an interactive 1099-R tutorial on our website. It walks you through a sample 1099-R and offers a short explanation of specific boxes on the form.

Changing Your Federal Tax Withholdings

Because federal tax law was revised for 2018, you may discover that you had too little or too much withheld. You can change your federal tax withholding at any time by sending us a W-4P form. (A handy tutorial about the W-4P  walks you through the steps on filling it out.)

W4-P Tax form tutorial screenshot

Understanding your W-4P Form Tutorial

We offer a federal tax withholding calculator. Enter a marital status and a number of exemptions into the calculator to see how much we would withhold based on current tax tables.

For more information, please visit the Taxes and Your Pension page on our website.

Federal Withholding and Your Pension

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Federal Withholding and your Pension

Getting hit every year with a larger than expected federal tax bill? You may want to increase the federal withholding from your NYSLRS pension. Or maybe you’re getting a hefty tax refund every year. If you have too much withheld, you’re basically giving the government an interest-free loan. Maybe you need to adjust your withholding due to recent changes to the tax law for 2018 (if you’re not sure, you can check with your tax preparer, or you can use this Internal Revenue Service Withholding Calculator.)

But whatever your situation, you can adjust the amount we withhold from your retirement benefit at any time. Just follow these Step-By-Step instructions.

  1. Print our NYSLRS Form W-4P (Withholding Certificate for Pension or Annuity Payments) from our website. (This is a fillable form, so you can type in the information before you print it out.)
  2. Fill in the top of the form with your name, address, last four digits of your Social Security number and Registration number (if known).
  3. Complete one of the three numbered sections. (Do not complete more than one section.)
    • Complete Section 1 if you do not wish to have any federal income tax withheld.
    • Complete Section 2 if you want us to withhold based on current Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax tables, your marital status and the number of federal exemptions you claim. To see how much that would be, use our tax withholding calculator. You can also have an additional amount withheld.
    • Complete Section 3 if you know how much you want withheld. Remember, the amount you should include here is the total amount you want withheld from your pension, not the amount you want to add or subtract from your current withholding.
  4. Print the completed form.
  5. Date and sign the form.
  6. Mail or fax your form to NYSLRS. Our address and fax number are at the top of the W-4P form.

Visit our website for other resources, including an interactive Understanding your W-4P Form tutorial, and more information about Taxes and Your Pension.

Taxes and Your NYSLRS Retirement Benefit

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Your NYSLRS retirement benefit isn’t subject to New York State or local taxes, but it is subject to federal income tax. Before you retire, take some time to think about how taxes could affect your retirement planning.

Will Your Pension Get Taxed in Another State?

While New York State won’t tax your NYSLRS retirement benefit, other states might. If you’re thinking of moving after retirement, you’ll need to consider the tax laws of the state you move to. The Retired Public Employees Association keeps a list of which states tax pension income on their website. And remember, if you do move, we’ll need your updated mailing address for our records.

Federal Tax Withholding Status for Your Pension

taxesAfter you’ve filed for retirement, we’ll reply back to you with a confirmation letter and some forms. One of these forms will be a W-4P form (Withholding Certificate for Pension or Annuity Payments). You’ll need to fill out this form to choose the amount you want withheld from your benefit each month for federal taxes. You can choose the withholding tax status that suits you, and you can change it any time afterward by completing a new W-4P form.

If you’re not sure how much you’ll need withheld for federal taxes, consider meeting with a tax professional to assist you before submitting the form. We also offer a federal tax withholding calculator on our website to help you plan.

Getting Your 1099-R

Once you start receiving your pension benefit, we’ll send you a 1099-R form for federal income tax filing purposes. A 1099-R form lists the distributions you’ll receive from your NYSLRS pension. We mail 1099-Rs out each year by January 31, so make sure we have your correct mailing address on file. This is especially important if you plan on moving in retirement.

We also feature an interactive 1099-R tutorial on our website. It can be a helpful tool to look at the first time you receive your 1099-R.

For more about taxes and your pension, please read our Tax Information About Your Pension FAQs.