Tax Preparation Services For Seniors

Senior Citizen Tax Preparation

VITA INCOME TAX PREPARATION SERVICES

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program is offering free tax help to people who qualify for this free service based on their level of income. The income limits set for the Morris County area are $90,000 or less for those who are Married and filing a Joint Return or $60,000 or less if you are filing as a Single taxpayer. Taxes will be prepared every Wednesday at the Rockaway Township Senior Center starting on February 9th and continuing through April 13th, 2022.

IRS-certified volunteers will prepare both the Federal and NJ State Income Tax returns and will also aid with completing the Property Tax Rebate form. Most completed returns will be filed electronically to the IRS and State of New Jersey on the same day the tax returns are prepared.

Due to the ongoing COVID concerns, proof of vaccinations will be required to have your taxes prepared. Also, no guests will be allowed to accompany taxpayers, including children, unless they are there to help the taxpayer during the tax preparation process.

If you qualify for this free service, please contact NORWESCAP at 784-4900, Extension 2902 for an appointment. On the day of your appointment, it is important that you bring all your personal income tax related documents. Tax returns cannot be completed unless you have all your documentation. A list of what you should bring is listed below.

• Proof of identification
• Social Security cards for you, your spouse, and dependents

Irs Tax Information For Elders

For those who are simply looking for information on what types of retirement income are taxable or the eligibility requirements for certain tax deductions and credits, the IRS has your back. Visit the IRS Tax Information for Seniors & Retirees site for tax answers that apply specifically to older adults and retired individuals.

Filing And Payment Deadline

You will be able to file your 2022 income tax and benefit return electronically starting on . The deadline for most Canadians to file this return is April 30, 2023. Since April 30, 2023, falls on a Sunday, your return will be considered filed on time if the Canada Revenue Agency receives it, or it is postmarked, on or before May 1, 2023.

If you or your spouse or common-law partner are self-employed, you have until , to file on time. Filing your return before the respective deadline will allow you to avoid interruptions to any benefit or credit payments you may be entitled to.

If you owe money, your payment is due on April 30, 2023. Your payment will be considered on time if the CRA receives it, or a Canadian financial institution processes it, on or before May 1, 2023.

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Annual Income Tax Clinic

411 Seniors operates its Income Tax Clinic annually to assist low-income older adults and people with disabilities with the filing of their income tax returns. We can also file returns for past tax years! Please note that it is important to file income tax returns by April 30 in order to avoid interruption of certain benefits such as Guaranteed Income Supplement , Translink Bus Pass, etc. To see if you are eligible to participate and for details on next years 2023 Income Tax Clinic, see below.

Contact our Information & Referral program at ircoordinator@411seniors.org for income tax filing services outside of the annual April/May clinic.

Eligibility for 411 Seniors Income Tax Clinic

• Older adults, aged 55 and older who are single and earn less than $35,000 per year
• Older adult couple, aged 55 and older with a joint income of less than $45,000 per year

Please note that the 411 Income Tax Clinic cannot file returns for people who have self-employment income, rental income, capital gains, or who are filing a tax return as part of a bankruptcy proceeding or for a deceased person.

Tax receipts will be mailed to you at the end of February. If you received a provincial government benefit in the previous year valued at more than $500, you will be issued a T5007 Tax Receipt by the government agency that provided the benefit. These T5007s are in addition to the T5 that you will receive from the federal government for your CPP, OAS and GIS benefits.

411 Seniors Income Tax Clinic 2023

Best For Ease Of Use: Jackson Hewitt

Jackson Hewitt

Jackson Hewitt gives you three easy ways to do your taxes with a professional through a Jackson Hewitt office or online, making the tax prep giant the best for ease of use.

• 6,000 office locations including 3,000 inside of Walmart stores

• Appointments and walk-in tax preparation supported

• Upload or drop-off forms to have your taxes prepared by a pro

• Minimum tax preparation fee of $150 for federal returns

• Pricing not clear and transparent on website

• Not all preparers are CPAs

Jackson Hewitt makes tax preparation easy with several options to file either online or through a network of 6,000 locations, giving it the win for ease of use. If you want to have your taxes done while you shop for groceries, you may want to use one of the 3,000 locations inside of Walmart stores. Many locations have evening and weekend hours, so you can have your taxes done on a schedule that works for you.

For in-person tax prep, you can start by uploading your tax forms through the Jackson Hewitt website. You can even use your phones camera to take a photo and upload forms. If uploading proves to be problematic for you, head to a Jackson Hewitt location to drop off your tax documents and return later for your full tax review session. In-person meetings can be done by appointment or as a walk-in. Prices depend on how many forms are required to complete your return.

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Get Virtual Help As You Prepare Your Own Taxes

If you prefer, you can request virtual assistance. With this option, you can prepare your taxes online for free and get help by sharing your screen with a virtual volunteer. A volunteer will coach you through the tax preparation process as you use free tax software.

The free software used for virtual assistance is available to taxpayers who have an adjusted gross income between $16,000 and $73,000. If your AGI is greater than $73,000, you can still request tax help — but you won’t get access to free software.

Start Preparing For Next Year

Start preparing for next year by getting and staying organized. Be sure that your paper documents are in one place and that your electronic records are easily accessible. It will take a lot of the stress out of tax time.

If you are unsure about anything regarding filing and preparing your taxes, it is wise to speak to a reputable tax professional.

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Heres How Seniors And Retirees Can File Their Taxes For Free

• IRS Statements and Announcements

IRS Tax Tip 2020-16, February 10, 2020

For taxpayers on a fixed income, every penny saved matters. Many of these are seniors and retirees who can file their taxes for free. IRS Free File provides free online tax preparation for taxpayers with income less than $69,000 a year.

Free File is one of several ways that older taxpayers can save money and file their taxes. Here are some facts about these programs to help these taxpayers determine which one fits their needs.

Best Overall: H& r Block

H& R Block

H& R Block is our pick for best overall tax preparation service due to its large network of branches that offer several tax preparation options with reasonable pricing.

• Drop-off, in-person, or virtual tax preparation services available

• Choose from 11,000 locations

• Pricing starts at $80 for a basic federal return and an undisclosed extra charge for state filing

• Additional costs per form can lead to high prices for some filers with complex taxes

• Not all preparers are CPAs

H& R Block is a well-known name in tax preparation with the size and reliability to help it win our top spot. In addition to doing your taxes yourself with H& R Blocks software, the company offers three full-service tax preparation plans. For for the period of May 1, 2019 through July 17, 2020, H& R Block assisted in preparing 21.2 million tax returns, or about one in every seven tax returns in the United States. You can have your taxes done either at one of 11,000 H& R Block retail locations or through an online service launched in January 2021.

A newer option gives you the ability to upload all of your forms for a fully virtual tax preparation experience. This means you get the full service of an H& R Block representative without having to go into an office. The combination of a large number of locations and multiple tax preparation options at a reasonable price makes it our best overall pick.

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Irs Tax Help Programs

The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program is available to taxpayers who generally make $58,000 or less, persons with disabilities, and taxpayers who speak limited English. The IRS also offers a free Tax Counseling for the Elderly program for all taxpayers, particularly those who are age 60 and older. VITA and TCE volunteers are IRS-certified and these sites are open from February through April.

It is worth noting that there is some crossover between the TCE program and the AARP Tax-Aide program. Nonprofit organizations receive grants from the IRS to provide free tax advice to their local community members.

Since the VITA and TCE programs are provided by volunteers, availability and specific services may vary. The IRS offers many other online resources and tax help tools, including IRS Free File.

To learn more about VITA and TCE, find an open site near you, or explore other IRS tools and publications, visit the IRS website.

Area Agencies On Aging

There are Area Agencies on Aging serving seniors in communities across the United States. AAAs offer an array of services, benefits and information to help support seniors and family caregivers. If IRS and AARP tax help appointments are limited or unavailable in your area, you may need to look into alternate sources of assistance. Try contacting your AAA to see if there are other free or low-cost tax preparation resources available in your local community.

Before showing up to any free tax preparation location, check if you need to make an appointment first. Typically, some sites offer assistance on a walk-in basis, but many are requiring pre-set appointments to ensure social distancing and other COVID-19 safety protocols are enforced. Use this handy checklist for free tax return preparation to ensure you gather and bring all necessary tax documents and information for the volunteers to help you.

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How Can Seniors Manage Their Iras And Rmds

Deferring taxes on your retirement savings doesn’t last forever. In the past, seniors needed to begin taking distributions from retirement accounts at age 70 1/2.

Now, after the SECURE Act, you must generally start taking distributions beginning in the year you turn 72. These mandatory distributions are called required minimum distributions . The law requires you to take a minimum amount of money out by April 1 of the year after you turn 72 and then make annual distributions by December 31 of each year.

Two exceptions exist to this rule with the first only applying to 2020:

If you invested in a traditional IRA, however, you’ll still need to take annual distributions despite continuing to work. If you have a Roth IRA and have made after-tax contributions, you won’t ever need to withdraw money from your account during your lifetime.

Required minimum distributions work by basing your distribution on your account balance and then accounting for a life expectancy factor set by IRS in Publication 590.

Who Should Use A Tax Preparation Service

Tax preparation services are best for anyone who doesnt want to do their own taxes for any reason. Whether youre looking to save time, dont know how to handle a complex tax situation, or just dont like doing math or using computers for your finances, a tax preparation service becomes a good choice for you.

Its important to note that you can likely save money doing your own taxes manually or with tax preparation software. Depending on your income and tax complexity, you may even have an option to do your taxes online for free. It is entirely up to taxpayers to use what gives them the most confidence in sending off IRS-related forms.

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How To Get Free Tax Help

Free tax is available through the AARP Foundation Tax-Aide from Feb. 1, 2022, to April 18, 2022. Hours and dates may vary by location throughout the pandemic.

AARP Foundation Tax-Aide volunteers can help prepare many types of returns. However, not all tax returns can be prepared. If a taxpayer has a unique or complex tax situation, help may be unavailable. You can review which types of tax situations qualify.

How Much Does A Tax Preparation Service Cost

Tax preparation service costs vary based on the provider you choose and the complexities of your taxes. Of the services we reviewed, there were limited options under $100 and those would only work for basic taxes with no state filing. Most tax filers should expect to pay around $150 or more for federal and state tax preparation. Some tax preparers charge a flat rate while others may charge a fee per additional form you submit.

For more complex taxes or additional services including bookkeeping, tax consulting, and payroll, pricing can go up dramatically. Some business owners with complex taxes might pay over a thousand dollars for full-service tax consulting and preparation.

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Free Tax Return Preparation

The following volunteer organizations offer free assistance to the elderly and other individual taxpayers that need to file their income tax electronically.

AARP Tax-Aide:

This organization offers free assistance for electronically filing federal and Arizona state returns. The AARP Foundation Tax-Aide Program offers free assistance to individuals 50 and older, who cant afford a tax preparation service, to file federal and Arizona State returns. Visit the AARP Tax-Aide website for more information.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance :

The VITA Program offers free tax help to people who generally make $60,000 or less, persons with disabilities and limited English speaking taxpayers. Visit the IRS website for more information on VITA.

Tax Counseling For The Elderly

The Tax Counseling for the Elderly, or TCE, program from the IRS provides free tax assistance specifically tailored to people age 60 and older.

Since 1978, TCE has offered free assistance and basic income tax return preparation to qualified seniors across the country.

While the program is operated by the IRS, community and nonprofit organizations across the country administer the program at the local level.

The IRS enters into agreements with private or nongovernmental nonprofit groups like the United Way and the Area Agency on Aging which provide training and technical assistance to IRS-certified volunteers.

These partner agencies are responsible for publicity, recruitment, training, site selection and management of volunteers.

No application is required to receive tax help at a TCE site, but most locations require an appointment.

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File 100% Free With Expert Help

Get live help from tax experts plus a final review with Live Assisted Basic.

Answer simple questions about your life and TurboTax Free Edition will take care of the rest.For simple tax returns only

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The above article is intended to provide generalized financial information designed to educate a broad segment of the public it does not give personalized tax, investment, legal, or other business and professional advice. Before taking any action, you should always seek the assistance of a professional who knows your particular situation for advice on taxes, your investments, the law, or any other business and professional matters that affect you and/or your business.

Register For Direct Deposit And File Online

You can register for direct deposit and file online to get any refund you may be eligible for faster. To file online, the CRA has a list of certified tax software products that are easy to use, fast, and secure, some of which are free!

When you file using NETFILE-certified software, you may be able to use:

• Auto-fill my return. This is a secure service that allows individuals and authorized representatives using certified tax software to automatically fill in parts of an income tax and benefit return with information that the CRA has available at the time of the request. This service can retrieve information from the current year and six years prior. Once Auto-fill my return has populated the return with the information, make sure that all the proper fields on the return are filled in and that the information provided is true, accurate and complete before you file your return.
• Express NOA. This is a secure service that allows individuals and authorized representatives to view their notice of assessment in their certified tax software and in My Account, immediately after the return has been received and processed by the CRA.

Electronic returns are generally processed within two weeks. Individuals who file online and are registered for direct deposit may get their refund in as little as eight business days. However, for paper returns, our service standard is to process them within eight weeks of receipt.

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