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Free Tax Preparation Services |
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Johnson County Earned Income Tax Credit Outreach Campaign “You Earned It! Now Claim It!” |
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Johnson County is pleased to partner with the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business,
Johnson County AARP, Iowa City Community School District, Iowa City Housing Authority, Neighborhood
Centers of Johnson County, Johnson County Council of Governments, and United Way of Johnson County
to bring FREE tax preparation services to working people in community sites throughout Johnson
County. The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program trains University of Iowa students and AARP volunteers to provide FREE Income Tax Preparation. Download these documents for more information about the site schedules and materials to bring to the sites: Information Flyer  Aviador de Información - Español English Intake Form Spanish Intake Form (Forma de Consumo española) English “What to Bring” List Spanish “What to Bring” List (Español “Que Traer” Lista)
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| Tax Preparation Sites | |||
| There are seven (7) locations throughout Johnson County that provide
FREE Tax Preparation Services. Please see below
for site locations and schedules. |
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Iowa City Public LibrarySPANISH TRANSLATORS AVAILABLE TRADUCTORES ESPAÑOLES DISPONIBLES |
123 S. Linn Street DOWNTOWN Iowa City No appointment necessary. SCHEDULE: Sunday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 pm and Wednesday evenings from 5:45 to 8:45 pm.
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Penn Elementary School
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230 N Dubuque Street North Liberty No appointment necessary. SCHEDULE: Mondays evenings from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
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Lucas Elementary School SPANISH TRANSLATORS AVAILABLE TRADUCTORES ESPAÑOLES DISPONIBLES |
830 Southlawn Drive EASTSIDE Iowa City No appointment necessary. SCHEDULE: Sunday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 pm.
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Pheasant Ridge Neighborhood Center ARABIC AND SPANISH TRANSLATORS AVAILABLE TRADUCTORES ESPAÑOLES DISPONIBLES |
2651 Roberts Road WESTDIDE Iowa City No appointment necessary. SCHEDULE: Sunday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 pm.
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Grant Wood Elementary SPANISH TRANSLATORS AVAILABLE TRADUCTORES ESPAÑOLES DISPONIBLES |
1930 Lakeside Drive SOUTHEAST Iowa City No appointment required. SCHEDULE: Saturday afternoons from 2:00 to 5:00 pm.
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Northwest Junior High School SPANISH TRANSLATORS AVAILABLE TRADUCTORES ESPAÑOLES DISPONIBLES |
1507 8st Street Coralville No appointment required. SCHEDULE: Monday evenings from 6:00 to 9:00 pm.
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Iowa City/Johnson County Senior Center
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28 South Linn Street DOWNTOWN Iowa City Appointment required. Call 356-5220 for appointments starting Tuesday, January 15th SCHECDULE: Every Tuesday and Thursday from 8:30am to 4:00pm beginning February 5th and ending April 15th. |
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| Frequently Asked Questions | ||
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Information excerpted and adapted from “Make Tax Time Pay: Help Workers
Claim All the Tax Credits They’ve Earned” (2006) from the Center for Budget
and Policy Priorities. On the Internet at www.cbpp.org.
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Who is eligible for VITA tax preparation services?
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This service is available for free
to people who earned less than $40,000 in 2007.
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What do I need to bring to the Tax Preparation Site?
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1. Completed Intake Form. CLICK HERE FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION OF THE FORM
or CLICK HERE FOR THE SPANISH VERSION OF THE FORM
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(Don’t worry if you forget this, you can complete it at the Preparation Site. 2. Proof of your identification (a driver’s license or other photo ID). 3. Social Security cards for you, your spouse, and your dependents, or a verification letter issued by the social Security Administration. 4. Income documentation including: W-2 forms from all jobs worked in 2007. All 1099 forms showing other income received in 2007. 5. Documentation for child care expenses and education expenses (1098-T). 6. For direct deposit of your refund or to split your refund into more than one account, bring your financial institution names, account numbers and the 9-digit American Bankers Association (ABA) routing numbers. Contact your bank if you need assistance identifying the ABA numbers. (Note: if you have a checking account, you can bring a blank check instead). |
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Do I need an appointment?
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You do not need an appointment for tax preparation services at Pheasant Ridge, Lucas,
Penn, Northwest Jr. High, Grant Wood, or the Iowa City Public Library. You do need
to make an appointment for services provided at the Senior Center. Call 356-5220 to
make an appointment.
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How much time will it take?
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It will take between 20 to 30 minutes to complete your taxes. All of the
sites will file tax returns electronically (using a computer).
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Are translation services available?
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Spanish translation is available at the Iowa City Public Library, Lucas Elementary, Northwest
Junior High, and Grant Wood Elementary sites. Arabic and Spanish translation is available at
the Pheasant Ridge site.
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Who can I call if I have any questions about the VITA tax preparation sites?
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You can contact Amy Correia, the Johnson County Social Services Coordinator at (319) 339-6169,
extension 318, or Dave Moran, Johnson County Community Partnership Coordinator at (319) 339-6169,
extension 380.
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What is the Earned Income Credit?
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The Earned Income Credit is a special tax benefit for working people who earn
low or moderate incomes. It has several important purposes, including
reducing tax burden and supplementing wages. Workers who qualify for the EIC and file a federal tax return can get back some or all of the federal income tax that was taken out of their pay during the year. They may also get extra cash back from the IRS. Even workers whose earnings are too small to owe income tax can get the EIC. |
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How much could I get back?
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Families earning less than $38,348 with two or more qualifying children in
the home could get as much as $4,536. Families earning less than $34,001
with one qualifying child in the home could get as much as $2,747. Single
workers with no children in the home earning less than $12,120 (or $14,120
for married workers) could get as much as $412.
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Who is a “qualifying child” for the purposes of the Earned Income Credit?
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• Sons, daughters, stepchildren, grandchildren and adopted children • Brothers, sisters, stepbrothers, or stepsisters – as well as descendants of such relatives • Foster children who are placed with the worker by an authorized government or private placement agency “Qualifying children” must live with the worker for more than half of the year. They must be under age 19, or under age 24 if they are full-time students. Children of any age who have total and permanent disabilities also may be qualifying children. Valid Social Security numbers are required for qualifying children born before December 31, 2006. |
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Can immigrant workers claim the Earned Income Credit?
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To claim the Earned Income Credit, immigrant workers, their spouses, and children
listed on the Schedule EIC must each have valid Social Security numbers that
permit them to work legally in the United States. Individual Taxpayer Identification
Numbers (ITIN) issued by the IRS to non-citizens and non-work Social Security numbers
issued to applicants or recipients of federally funded benefits programs cannot be
used to claim the EIC. In addition, an immigrant must be a “resident alien for tax
purposes” for the entire tax year to claim the EIC. An immigrant who was a
non-resident alien at any time during the year cannot claim the EIC unless he or she:
• Was married to a U.S. citizen or a resident alien as of December 31 of the tax year, and • Files a joint tax return with the spouse and chooses to be treated as a resident alien for the entire year. Immigrants who are “resident aliens for tax purposes” may be legal permanent residents, meaning that they have a “green card” (I-551 card). However, many legal immigrants who do not yet have their “green cards” may still be resident aliens for tax purposes. For example, the following immigrants might qualify for the Earned Income Credit if they and their family members have legal work authorization and Social Security numbers: • Amnesty temporary residents and amnesty family members granted “Family Fairness” or “Family Unity” status • Refugees, asylees and those granted Temporary Protected Status • Applicants for these and other immigration statuses who have legal work authorization and Social Security numbers. NOTE: Immigrant workers’ children must have lived with them in the U.S. for more than six months of the year to be considered qualifying children for the Earned Income Credit. Also, the worker’s main home must be in the U.S. |
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Does the Earned Income Credit affect eligibility for other public benefits?
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The Earned Income Credit does not count as income in determining eligibility
for benefits like cash assistance (FIP), Medicaid, food stamps, SSI or public
housing. The FIP program exempts EIC payments in the month received as well
as in the following month. Funds remaining after the end of the second month
are countable resources.
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Can the Earned Income Credit help Workers with Disabilities?
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To be eligible for the Earned Income Credit, individuals must have earned
income. Benefits such as Social Security Disability Insurance, SSI, military
disability pensions, and payments from individually-purchased disability
insurance policies are not counted as earned income. Individuals who receive
these types of benefits may qualify for the Earned Income Credit if they, or
their spouse, also have earned income.
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