1. Can I rollover some portion of the commutation to an IRA rollover account already established some 17 years ago? Yes - you may roll over the distribution from your retirement plan to your IRA account - as long as there were less than 60 days after you took the distribution and that is so-called defined retirement plan *that you need to confirm with the administrator of the plan).
You may also ask the administrator about direct roll over - to avoid tax withholding in case they would issue the distribution check to you.
2. Is the advance taxable? Yes - that is generally a taxable income and you should receive a reporting form 1099-R - http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1099r.pdf - please verify with the administrator which distribution code they will use in the box 7.
Distributions from pension plans are generally subject of mandatory 29% tax withholding. You may direct the administrator of the plan to have a different withholding by filing the form W-4P - http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4p.pdf - that is similar to the form W-4 you filed with your employer for withholding from wages.
3. Should I file estimated tax for Sept 15, 2009 for the amount of the commutation?
I suggest to estimate your total taxable income for 2009 and total tax liability.
Generally - if your expected net tax liability at the tax time is less than $1000 - you do not need pay estimate taxes.
Let me know if you need any help.
Yes - you have 60 days from the time of receiving the distribution to roll it over into the IRA and avoid tax liability.
If you receive the distribution on July 15 - your 60 days period will be ended on Sep 13, but you likely do not want to wait till the last day in case of possible delays in processing.
Your employer may not pay taxes for you - that is your responsibility.
They may provide you additional compensation to cover the tax liability - but that compensation will be included into your income regardless of the purpose of the compensation and regardless how you will use the compensation.
You may confirm with the administrator of your retirement plan which amount will be reported on the form 1099-R as your taxable income.
Most likely - they withheld your federal income tax - but I suggest to confirm that as well - you need this information to plan your estimated tax payment.
Please also verify if they withheld any state income tax.
Any payment to you or on your behalf will be considered your compensation.
Only tax liability that is withheld from your compensation and remitted to the IRS will be credited against your income tax liability.
If that international organization is in the US - they should follow same withholding rules as any other US organization.
For you - to plan estimated tax payment - you need to know if any taxes has been withheld from your payments. Otherwise - we can't predict your net tax liability.
I would first confirm with your plan administrator - if that is defined pension plan - only in this situation you will be eligible to roll over.
If yes - you may roll over all or part of distribution and defer tax liability.
Tax Preparer
Taxes, Immigration, Labor Relations