Places To Find Free Help For Taxes

Published on Wednesday, 15 February 2012 23:03 Written by Linda McMaken

It's that time of year again. The holidays are over, winter has set in and your annual tax paperwork has begun arriving. Once you've gathered all the necessary information to file your tax returns, there are several options for filing your taxes for free. These free options are great, particularly if you have a simple return or just need a little extra help in filing your taxes.

SEE: The History Of Taxes In The U.S.

Prepare Them Yourself


Preparing your taxes by yourself is the least expensive method of filing. The IRS has an outstanding website where you can download any form(s) you might need, as well as instruction sheets. The site also has a "fill-in-forms" area if you are filing a simple return like the 1040EZ. While this area does add income, it will not calculate the return for you, nor does it do depreciation - those calculations are up to you.

You can also find most of the commonly used IRS forms at post offices, public libraries, senior centers, banks, credit unions and even some grocery stores.

Free Software and Free File


The IRS has teamed with a number of tax preparing services and software companies to provide free tax service for many Americans. Receiving free service means you must meet certain qualifications to be eligible such as earning less than $57,000 per year, being between the ages of 23 and 55 and other qualifiers. Each tax service has slightly different eligibility requirements. You'll need to visit their websites to see which one(s) might be right for you.

The below list of providers is working in conjunction with the IRS. Many of these providers had already offered free tax preparation for those filing an EZ form.

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