Make appointments now for free tax help in LW

IT'S TAX TIME

The AARP Tax Program sponsored by the Golden Age Foundation (GAF) will open on March 8, with hours of operation on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings through April 14. Residents must have appointments. No walk-ins are allowed due to COVID-19 restrictions.

To schedule an appointment, call (562) 596-1987. Leave your name and telephone number, and a GAF volunteer will call you back. The GAF expects a high call volume and many call-backs. To maximize efficiency, people are asked to answer their telephones even though the calling number will not be familiar or may be blocked.

The program will work a little differently this year. After you schedule an appointment, you will be sent an intake/interview sheet and other documents to complete at home before your appointment. These interview sheets will not be available at the LW Library this year.

TAX, page 3 At your appointment, you will be interviewed using the intake/ interview sheet. Volunteers and clients alike will be wearing masks and following distancing rules. Interviews will be conducted on the patio of Clubhouse 3 outside of the new Knowledge and Learning Center, across from the LW Library.

The AARP volunteer will scan all of your documents to a secure server. After the documents are scanned, they will be returned to you, and you will schedule an appointment to return the following week to pick up your completed federal and state returns.

Your returns will be prepared and quality-reviewed by IRS-certified tax-aide counselors working at home using your scanned documents. Only the counselors assigned to your return will have access to your scanned documents. The electronic files will be restricted to view only. The tax-aide will be unable to copy, print, share or download the file. All returns will be prepared using Tax Slayer Pro Online software over a secure Internet connection.

When you return, the volunteer will review the completed return with you and secure your signature on the documents, allowing your return to be electronically filed. After the return is finalized, it will be e-filed that day, and your scanned documents will be deleted within 48 hours after being accepted by the IRS and the Franchise Tax Board.

Some returns do not meet program guidelines and will not be able to be prepared. Volunteers can only prepare returns for fullyear residents of California for 2020. If you are married, you must file a Married Filed Joint return. Returns with rental property or sale of anything other than your California residence or stocks, bonds and mutual funds cannot be handled.

According to new restrictions, Schedule Cs for self-employed individuals cannot be prepared. If you have a broker statement for the sale of stock or other commodities, it cannot exceed 15 pages. Volunteers cannot prepare any amended returns for 2020 or prior years. If you received a distribution from an IRA or retirement plan and intend to include the amount in income over the next three years or plan to repay the amount in three years, your return cannot be prepared.