1042-S instead of 1099-R

Aaargh!  Rolled over a 401k with Fidelity to a Roth IRA with Fidelity and although I have a W9 filed with Fidelity apparently that doesn’t apply to the 401ks  and I have to send w9s separately for them!  Fidelity say they can’t change what’s already been done so now it looks like I have to send form 4852 with my 1040 to explain all this. So frustrating!  Anyone else been through this?  Any advice ?  Will we still be able to file electronically or will this need to be a paper return?  Is the IRS going to come looking for a 1040-NR from me because of the 1042-s ? What a mess! 

I file 4852s electronically with TurboTax so e-filing shouldn’t be an issue. I think that with the explanation you put on the 4852 as to why you didn’t get a 1099R then you should be okay. Fingers crossed.

Aaargh!  Rolled over a 401k with Fidelity to a Roth IRA with Fidelity and although I have a W9 filed with Fidelity apparently that doesn’t apply to the 401ks  and I have to send w9s separately for them!  Fidelity say they can’t change what’s already been done so now it looks like I have to send form 4852 with my 1040 to explain all this. So frustrating!  Anyone else been through this?  Any advice ?  Will we still be able to file electronically or will this need to be a paper return?  Is the IRS going to come looking for a 1040-NR from me because of the 1042-s ? What a mess! 

Presumably you are not a US citizen and reside in the UK so Fidelity didn't issue a 1099-R, but they should send a 1042-S as the withholding agent?

Presumably you are not a US citizen and reside in the UK so Fidelity didn't issue a 1099-R, but they should send a 1042-S as the withholding agent?

From earlier posts I believe he is a dual citizen living in the UK hence his frustration at being issued the wrong form.

https://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=101203.0

From earlier posts I believe he is a dual citizen living in the UK hence his frustration at being issued the wrong form.

https://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=101203.0

OK so this is an error on Fidelity's part as they should have sent a 1099-R?

From your post it seems that you don't get 1099-R's or 1042-S's either and file 4852. Why do you have to do that? Just errors from your withholding agent?
I did a ROTH rollover in 2023 and got a 1099-R which is as it should be as I'm a US/UK dual citizen living in the US, but if I move to the UK I would do the rollover in the same way ie online and expect to get a 1099-R in the same way.

OK so this is an error on Fidelity's part as they should have sent a 1099-R?

From your post it seems that you don't get 1099-R's or 1042-S's either and file 4852. Why do you have to do that? Just errors from your withholding agent?
I did a ROTH rollover in 2023 and got a 1099-R which is as it should be as I'm a US/UK dual citizen living in the US, but if I move to the UK I would do the rollover in the same way ie online and expect to get a 1099-R in the same way.

I do get 1099Rs from Vanguard for distributions and Roth conversions, plus a 1099R for my US pension.

I don’t get 1099Rs from my UK pensions which is why I file substitute 1099Rs along with associated form 4852. If you read the first post in this thread the OP asked if he had to file a paper return with a 4852 and you will see that I was simply assuring the OP that they can still be filed electronically (because I have done so for 17 years.)

On the 4852 he simply needs to say that Fidelity sent him the wrong form.

I do get 1099Rs from Vanguard for distributions and Roth conversions, plus a 1099R for my US pension.

I don’t get 1099Rs from my UK pensions which is why I file substitute 1099Rs along with associated form 4852. If you read the first post in this thread the OP asked if he had to file a paper return with a 4852 and you will see that I was simply assuring the OP that they can still be filed electronically (because I have done so for 17 years.)

On the 4852 he simply needs to say that Fidelity sent him the wrong form.

Ah ok that explains it all. So basically Fidelity just made a mistake. I'm glad that Vanguard seems to have this sorted out a bit better.

Ah ok that explains it all. So basically Fidelity just made a mistake. I'm glad that Vanguard seems to have this sorted out a bit better.

Fortunately I can say that Vanguard have been extremely understanding and easy to deal with. 

A bit of advice I have given elsewhere on this forum is when the time comes to make Roth distributions that the IRS rule is that for overseas customers there is a mandatory 30% withholding even though no taxes are due.  Vanguard told me that this applies to all IRAs regardless of an individual’s tax situation. (There are situations where a Roth distribution is taxable)

However, Vanguard does allow a street address where you reside and a different correspondence address. For my correspondence address I now use the same US forwarding address my daughter uses. (I did use her US address until she moved to England). I got caught out having to make a 30% withholding the first time I made a Roth distribution but with a US correspondence address that is not an issue, I can choose any withholding I want, including 0%.

A bit of advice I have given elsewhere on this forum is when the time comes to make Roth distributions that the IRS rule is that for overseas customers there is a mandatory 30% withholding even though no taxes are due.  Vanguard told me that this applies to all IRAs regardless of an individual’s tax situation. (There are situations where a Roth distribution is taxable)

However, Vanguard does allow a street address where you reside and a different correspondence address. For my correspondence address I now use the same US forwarding address my daughter uses. (I did use her US address until she moved to England). I got caught out having to make a 30% withholding the first time I made a Roth distribution but with a US correspondence address that is not an issue, I can choose any withholding I want, including 0%.

I might have to get a South Dakota mailing address then or just impose on some of my US friends.

Fortunately I can say that Vanguard have been extremely understanding and easy to deal with. 

Yes I'm hoping they will stay that way. I have my accounts set up with a physical key for 2FA to avoid the need for text messages. Do you have any issues logging into your US bank accounts from the UK ie do they block foreign IP addresses? I've been looking at my options and the state department FCU looks intersting, they use Wise for international transfers and you can even join from overseas as long as you are a member of ACA.

https://www.americansabroad.org/aca/sdfcuaccounts-description-and-faqs/

Yes I'm hoping they will stay that way. I have my accounts set up with a physical key for 2FA to avoid the need for text messages. Do you have any issues logging into your US bank accounts from the UK ie do they block foreign IP addresses? I've been looking at my options and the state department FCU looks intersting, they use Wise for international transfers and you can even join from overseas as long as you are a member of ACA.

https://www.americansabroad.org/aca/sdfcuaccounts-description-and-faqs/

Looks like you are well set.

My US bank, HSBC, uses an authentication within its banking app and I usually use that app for everything including downloading statements. When I do sometimes log in from my laptop it accepts overseas URLs.

Wise also uses its app for authentication when logging in through a PC.

Looks like you are well set.

My US bank, HSBC, uses an authentication within its banking app and I usually use that app for everything including downloading statements. When I do sometimes log in from my laptop it accepts overseas URLs.

Wise also uses its app for authentication when logging in through a PC.

My bank is BoA and I've read that sometimes you need a VPN to log on. Also I don't think their phone app is available for UK phones, so the SDFCU looks like a good option.

My bank is BoA and I've read that sometimes you need a VPN to log on. Also I don't think their phone app is available for UK phones, so the SDFCU looks like a good option.

My daughter’s bank is Chase in the USA and she doesn’t have a VPN problem. Not sure about the app but like me she has an iPhone here in England and could get the app from the Apple America store. That is something I didn’t say about Vanguard, the app is not available in the UK store. 2 or 3 years after I moved to England the app stopped working and needed an upgrade so I had to switch stores to download it.

Chase also has a UK bank these days, online only but gets great reviews. The week our daughter arrived in England in 2022 she downloaded it and opened an account, took less than 30 minutes. She was sat on our couch while she did it and I immediately sent her £1 as a test.

I couldn't find much online to reassure me that I could log into my BoA account from the UK without any IP/VPN issues, just some scare stories that it's difficult and suggestions for various VPN work arounds that looked like ads for VPNs. So I went into my local branch not really expecting to get an answer, but I lucked out. The guy on customer sales was from Brazil and he knew all about international access as he did it every time he went to Brazil to visit family. The bottom line is that he said there are no IP/VPN issues, but that the 2FA can be tricky as it needs a US phone for texts and the solution is to use a physical security key like Yubikey.

I will probably add a SDFCU account before I leave the US to give me options and do a recon trip back to the UK to test everything out before I pull the plug and put the house on the market.