SURVIVING SPOUSE ANNUITY

[Possi]

The surviving spouse gets her husband's annuity. This is the first year.

His taxable amount was always reduced on the 1099.

Her 1099 taxable amount is unknown.

Should I begin the Simplified General Rule with her, using his original start date and factor in his amount recovered so far?

Here's what I read:

Taxation at Death – Spousal Continuation – Many variable annuities enable your spouse to continue the policy at your death. Some companies will pay the death benefit into the policy and continue the original policy without tax consequences. Others will require your spouse to choose either the death benefit (if the account value is lower than the death benefit) or spousal continuation. Choosing the death benefit in these situations would be a taxable event; your spouse would be taxed at ordinary income tax rates on the difference between the death benefit and the amount you invested, adjusted for any withdrawals. In most cases, the policy would not be included in your taxable estate for estate tax purposes due to the marital allowance. You should consult the prospectus for the terms of spousal continuation.