Tax FAQ

Yes. We report certain tax information to the states and the District of Columbia. The IRS provides information for states that participate in combined federal and state tax filing.

If they don’t participate, some states require direct reporting of the information. We report that information according to each state's laws and regulations.

Go to your account transaction history to view any checks that cleared your USAA account in the past 18 months. To locate a specific check image from your checking or savings account history:

• Log on to usaa.com and select your account.
  
• Select “Advanced Search,” go to the “Category” section and enter "Checks.”
  
• Find your check images next to the check description.

You can save check images to your device or print them for your records. If you can’t find a specific check, call us at 800-531-USAA (8722).

Generally, the IRS Form 1098 is used to report mortgage interest you’ve paid your lender. The form will be available every year after Jan. 31.

In some cases, you can opt out of withholding by submitting a completed Form W-4P or Form W-4R prior to distribution. Certain states also require state tax be withheld from distributions.

If you live outside of the U.S., you’ll be subject to mandatory withholding from distributions.

Call the issuer at the toll-free telephone number listed on the tax form to discuss any issues.

When you’re ready to start your return, go to usaa.com, then file with TurboTax (Opens in New Window). You can also access TurboTax through our Tax Center. We’ll apply your discount when you submit your completed return to the IRS.

If you used TurboTax through usaa.com and didn't receive your discount, contact TurboTax for help.

TurboTax Live features the following products that match you with tax pros to help take the worry out of filing your taxes. They’re also eligible for the USAA discount.

• TurboTax Live Assisted: You'll get advice from tax experts who can help you finish your taxes error-free with a final review of your return before you file.
• TurboTax Live Full Service‍ ‍: A dedicated expert will do your taxes from start to finish, finding every dollar you deserve.

For information on minimum operating system requirements and browsers, read the TurboTax instructions(Opens in New Window).

You’ll receive IRS Form 1099-C if a financial entity, such as a creditor, has written off $600 or more in debt through cancellation or forgiveness.

Some exceptions may apply, such as bankruptcy and insolvency. Reach out to a tax advisor if you're not sure what to do.

Certain lenders must provide you with this statement if they gain ownership or control of property that was security for a loan or know that such property has been abandoned.

Property includes:

• Real property, such as a personal residence.
• Intangible and tangible personal property held for investment or used in a trade or business.

For information about your tax consequences, review Publication 4681(Opens in New Window). Consult a tax advisor if you have more questions.

Every year, your IRS Form 1099-INT will be mailed or delivered electronically on or prior to Jan. 31. You can view your documents on usaa.com by going to the "My Documents" tab under your profile.

You may not receive this form if your account earned less than $10 in interest and wasn’t subject to withholding.

Interest is reported to the IRS as income for only the primary account holder or owner.

You could receive IRS Form 1099-INT if you earned $10 or more and if any of these apply:

• Your dividend option is set to allow dividends to accumulate interest on deposits.
  
• Your contract is set up with a discounted or advanced premium option.
• A delayed death benefit distribution is paid to a designated beneficiary of a life insurance or annuity.

You’ll receive Form 1099-R if you received a tax distribution of $10 or more from any of the following:

• Profit-sharing or retirement plans
• IRAs
• Annuities
• Pensions
• Insurance contracts
• Survivor income benefit plans
• Disability payments under life insurance contracts
• Charitable gift annuities

Although an Internal Revenue Code, or IRC, Section 1035 exchange transaction may not be taxable, they’re reportable to the IRS. Contact a tax advisor to understand how this will affect your tax return.

The distribution code indicates the type of withdrawal made from the account. You can find a description of each code listed in the instructions of your Form 1099-R.

Form 1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Income, is sent when certain types of distributions were made, including:

• Income earned as "Other Income" of $600 or more. This may include any payments made to you on loss of use of funds and accommodation payments.
  
• Commission rent income of $600 or more.
• Royalties paid during the last tax year of at least $10.
• Payments for prizes, awards, legal services and other nonemployee activities of $600 or more.
• Payments made to an attorney of $600 or more for structured settlements cases.

We’ll still send a 1099-MISC when there’s withholding of any amount, regardless of the income amount.

You may have received a Form 5498 because you made a regular or rollover contribution to an IRA. This includes:

• Moving funds from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA and vice versa through an IRA conversion.
• Moving previous contributions from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA and vice versa through an IRA recharacterization of contributions.
• Making a regular or rollover contribution to a Simplified Employee Pension, or SEP IRA, or a traditional or Roth IRA.

We recommend contacting a tax advisor for guidance on reporting these transactions and determining if you need to amend your tax return.

No. You’ll report any contribution you make after Dec. 31 in the following year.

To find a PDF of USAA Life Company tax forms, go to "My Documents." If you've elected to receive tax forms by mail, you'll get them through the U.S Postal Service. For more details on when tax documents will be available, refer to our Tax Center.

If you change it to someone other than a spouse, the current owner will receive a 1099-R, and any earnings will be reported to the current owner as reportable income.

Upon the death of the annuity recipient or the owner of a deferred annuity contract, the death distribution would be paid to the designated beneficiaries.

If there are joint annuity recipients, they’d continue to receive the payout. In instances where there are remaining guaranteed payments, death distributions would be paid out to the named beneficiaries.

If your annuity is owned by a trust, a change in the annuity recipient will trigger a death distribution. Consult a tax advisor for more details on options and restrictions.

If ownership is transferred to a trust where the annuity recipient loses access to the annuity, the transaction is a taxable and reportable event on Form 1099-R to the current owner.

Transfers to a trust, which acts as the agent of the annuity recipient, aren’t taxable or reportable events.

IRA and SEP IRA: Generally, 10% is withheld for federal tax purposes. The IRA owner may opt out of withholding or choose a different amount to withhold.

Nonqualified annuities: Generally, policyholders can opt out of withholding or specify an amount to withhold. Otherwise, 10% of a nonperiodic distribution is withheld.

Payments made to a beneficiary of a deceased annuity holder are subject to the same withholding rules. If there’s no taxable gain at the time of the distribution, no withholding is required.

If you live outside of the U.S., you’ll be subject to mandatory withholding from distributions.

If you live in certain states, we’re required to withhold state income tax at the rate determined by your state whenever you have federal income tax withheld.

In some states, mandatory withholding is required unless an exception applies and is stated in the proper state election form.

Consult a tax advisor about your specific situation and for additional state withholding requirements.

It’s a provision in the tax code where you may avoid paying taxes if you transfer any of the following to a new policy:

• Existing annuity
• Life insurance policy
• Long-term care product
• Endowment

The provision doesn't allow for the exchange of an annuity for a life policy.