As part of the Mayor’s Action Challenge, the City of Virginia Beach Human Services Department is offering additional tax filing options including assistance with FREE online tax preparation.
The Human Services’ EITC web page @ http://www.vbgov.com/government/departments/human-services/your-dhs/Pages/EarnedIncomeTaxCredit.aspx provides links to Free File, a great choice for taxpayers earning $57,000 or less to prepare simple federal and state returns. Using these links taxpayers can e-file their return and get their refunds quickly. Brand-name tax software guides taxpayers through the process ensuring that they receive all the credits they are due.
IRS Trained Volunteers are available every Friday in February from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Human Services Department, 3432 Virginia Beach Blvd., to assist taxpayers in preparing their own return using IRS Free File options. Taxpayers can bring specific questions to be answered or have a volunteer guide them through the process of filing their own tax return.
A Super Saturday Tax Preparation event scheduled for Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Youth Employment Center at Pembroke Mall offers free tax preparation by IRS trained and certified volunteers, assistance with Free File preparation, financial planning advice by volunteers from the Hampton Roads Financial Planning Association, assistance with obtaining annual credit reports, federal “Ballpark” estimates for retirement, and enrollment in Virginia Saves.
South Hampton Roads EITC Coalition (SHREITC) and AARP have a number of free tax preparation sites available where low to moderate income taxpayers can get their taxes prepared by IRS trained volunteers. The VITA Program generally offers free tax help to people who make $51,000 or less and need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing to qualified individuals in local communities. They can inform taxpayers about special tax credits for which they may qualify such as Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), Child Tax Credit, and Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled.
EITC is a special refundable credit for low to moderate income workers to reduce their federal income tax liability. Those who qualify will owe less and may be eligible for a larger refund. If you worked during 2012, and your earned income and adjusted gross income (AGI) were each less than $45,060 (or less than $50,270 for married workers) you may be eligible for a refund of up to $5,891. To learn more about the available credits and see if you qualify visit www.irs.gov.
To learn more about resources available through the Mayor’s Action Challenge, visit
http://www.vbgov.com/government/departments/human-services/your-dhs/Pages/MayorsActionChallenge.aspx or call Lori Irwin at 385-3551.
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