How to determine RMD on a deceased parent's Government/OPM annuity payments?

You're asking a good question, but I think there might be some confusion about how RMDs work with government pensions. Government pensions/annuities through OPM typically don't have RMDs in the same way that IRAs or 401(k)s do. The RMD rules generally apply to tax-deferred retirement accounts where the government wants to ensure those funds eventually get taxed. With an OPM annuity, your father was already receiving regular payments (which were likely already being taxed appropriately). The "unknown" in box 2a of the 1099-R typically refers to the taxable amount of the distribution, not whether there was an RMD. Since your father was already receiving regular payments from these annuities, he was essentially already satisfying any distribution requirements by the nature of the payment structure. I'd suggest explaining to your tax preparer that these were government annuity payments, not traditional retirement accounts with RMD requirements.

After dealing with a similar situation with my mom's federal pension, I found a tool that made understanding all these tax documents so much easier. I tried https://taxr.ai and uploaded all the 1099-Rs and other tax documents we had. Their system analyzed everything and clearly explained that government annuities don't have RMDs like traditional retirement accounts do. The tool breaks down what each box on the 1099-R means specifically for government pensions and explains how they're treated for tax purposes. It even highlighted that the "unknown" in Box 2a is common for certain government pensions and explained how to properly report it. It saved me hours of research and confusion when dealing with OPM paperwork, which can be really overwhelming when you're also handling a loved one's estate.

I want to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai after being initially skeptical. I finally broke down and tried it with my mother's Federal pension documents after struggling to get clear answers about her retirement benefits. It was actually really helpful. The system immediately identified her OPM annuity payments and explained that they don't have RMDs because they're already in distribution mode. It also clarified why box 2a showed as "unknown" on her forms (apparently this is common with certain federal pensions). The explanation was much clearer than what I found digging through IRS publications, and it saved me from making an error on her return. The tool flagged some potential deductions related to her federal service that I wouldn't have known about. Just wanted to share since it ended up being more useful than I expected for this specific situation.

When my uncle passed away last year, I had a similar issue with his government pension. After trying for weeks to get through to someone at OPM who could help me understand the tax implications, I finally used https://claimyr.com to get through to an actual person at the IRS. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They got me connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes (after I had spent literally hours redialing on my own). The agent confirmed that government annuities from OPM don't have RMDs in the traditional sense since they're already being paid out as regular distributions. They also explained exactly how to handle the "unknown" in box 2a on the final tax return. It was such a relief to get an official answer directly from the IRS rather than trying to interpret rules on my own when dealing with something as specific as government pensions.

I need to admit I was wrong about Claimyr. After being completely skeptical about paying for help getting through to the IRS, I finally tried it after spending literally an entire day on hold and getting disconnected three times. It actually worked exactly as promised - I got a call back in about 20 minutes telling me they had an IRS agent on the line. The agent confirmed what others here have said - government OPM annuities don't have RMDs like traditional retirement accounts because they're already in payout status. They explained exactly how to report it on the tax return. I was able to get specific answers about how to handle the "unknown" amount in box 2a that my tax software kept flagging as an error. Turns out there's a specific way to report this that most tax preparers don't deal with often. Just wanted to follow up and say it was legitimately helpful for this specific situation with government pensions.

Just to add some more info here - I work with federal retirees (not a tax professional though). OPM annuities are different from IRAs/401ks as others have pointed out. They're basically already in payout mode from the start, so there's no concept of an RMD. Your tax preparer might be confused because they're used to dealing with traditional retirement accounts. For OPM annuities, you just report what was distributed according to the 1099-R. One thing to watch for: part of the annuity may be tax-free if your father contributed to the pension with after-tax money during his working years. This is often why box 2a shows "unknown" - because OPM isn't calculating the taxable portion. There's a simplified and general rule method for figuring this out based on when he retired. Since you mentioned post-1996, check out the instructions for Form 1040, or IRS Publication 721 has specific guidance for federal pensions.

One thing no one has mentioned yet - check if your father was making contributions to his pension while he was working. Federal employees often contribute after-tax dollars to their pension during their working years. When they retire and receive annuity payments, a portion of each payment is actually a return of those already-taxed contributions. That portion is tax-free, and this might be why box 2a shows "unknown" - because it depends on the individual's contribution history. The OPM should have sent your father (and now you as his executor) an annual statement showing how much of his annuity payment was taxable vs. non-taxable. Look for a statement from OPM at the beginning of the year or with his January payment.