VITA Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
IMPORTANT: New information about paper check refunds and self-preparation of your taxes, see below in red
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
| Who qualifies for VITA? | Generally, low-to-moderate income families (less than $69,000 income), the elderly, disabled, and English as a Second Language (ESL). |
| What do I need to bring? | Photo ID, Social Security card for self, spouse & dependents, all income information, last years return, and anything else to complete the return. For full information: What To Bring |
| Who needs to be present? | If married, both spouses need to be present. |
| Can this be completed in one day? | Yes. It takes approximately one hour to complete a typical tax return at a VITA site. |
| How long of a wait should I expect? | If you have scheduled an appointment, we will do our best to get you in within your scheduled appointment time. If you are a walk-in, we will give you our best estimate of wait time when you arrive or schedule you an appointment at a later date. |
| Do we take appointments? | Yes. We are taking appointments NOW. The Via Linda and Fountain Hills sites require an appointment. The Good Shepherd of the Hills, Scottsdale Community College, and Vista del Camino sites will take walk-ins after appointments have been served. |
| Are there any hidden costs? | No. |
| When will services begin? | First week of February ( VITA Locations ). |
| Can you do all types of returns? | There are certain returns we cannot do. For example, we cannot do a Married Filing Separate return, business returns with a loss, or rental properties. Check Out of Scope Items for further details. |
| Can you prepare a return that has itemized deductions. | Yes. We will determine whether using the standard or itemized deductions is more advantageous for you in preparing your return. If you think you may be able to itemize, please bring a summary of the various categories of itemized deductions prior to your visit. We will not look at or organize receipts. |
| Can you direct deposit my refund? | Yes. Be sure to bring in your banking information including both your routing number and account number. |
| Can I get a check mailed to me for a refund? | Taxpayers are now required to provide the IRS their direct deposit information or show they qualify for an exception. Without this, the IRS will wait an additional six weeks before issuing a paper check. It may take months from filing to receive a refund this way. |
| What if I don’t have a bank account for direct deposit? | Bank On Arizona works with participating banks and credit unions across the state to offer safe, low-cost, low-fee transaction accounts that are certified as meeting the Bank On National Account Standards. Visit https://bankonaz.org/ to get started. |
| Can I pay my taxes with a direct debit from my account? | Yes. Be sure to bring in your banking information including both your routing number and account number. |
| I am a Senior Citizen with only Social Security and a small pension. Do I need to file a tax return? | Although you may not be REQUIRED to file a tax return, we encourage you to do so since this will help prevent Identity Theft. In addition, you may be eligible for some Arizona state credits that you may not be aware of like the AZ Property Tax Credit. |
| I am an Uber/Lyft driver. Can you prepare my return? | Yes, we can prepare most returns for self-employed individuals. Please refer to Out of Scope Items for situations that we cannot handle. Please have all your income and expenses summarized for us. |
| Can you prepare a return that has investment income? | Yes, we can prepare returns that have interest, dividend, and capital gain income. However, if your return is complicated enough that it cannot reasonably be completed in an hour, we may not be able to accommodate you. |
| Can you do the AZ property tax credit? | Yes. If you rented property, then you need to obtain AZ Form 201 from your landlord prior to having your taxes prepared. Your landlord is required by law to provide Form 201 upon your request. If you own your home, your tax preparer can look up the property taxes paid in 2024. To determine if you might qualify for an AZ Property Tax Credit please refer to AZ Property Tax Credit. |
| What other AZ credits can you handle? | We can handle credits for contributions to Qualified Charitable Organizations, Qualified Foster Care Organizations, Public Schools, Private School Tuition Organizations, Certified School Tuition Organizations, and the Military Family Relief Fund. Keep in mind that these are all non-refundable Arizona credits and can be used only to reduce a tax liability. |
| Can you prepare state returns for states other than Arizona? | In general we can prepare simple returns for states other than Arizona if you have a copy of the prior year tax return to use as a reference. We cannot prepare returns for California, New York, New Jersey, or Massachusetts. |
| Are the volunteers certified? | Yes, all of our VITA volunteers are all certified yearly by the IRS. |
| Can the return be e-filed? | Yes, your return (both Federal and state) will be e-filed within 48 hours of your visit. There are several rare exceptions when a return must be filed on paper. |
| Are there other VITA sites nearby? | Yes. Please see Central AZ VITA or go to the IRS VITA Locator to search by zip code for a site near you. |
| Can you help me do my taxes myself instead of coming in for an appointment? | Yes, if your income is $89,000 or less, we can provide you with a link to our TaxSlayer software that will enable you to prepare your Federal and state returns and e-file them for free. We will provide you with tutorials and a phone number to call if you need assistance. Note that we can assist you with only those items that we are certified to handle (e.g., “In Scope”). Please send an email to info@mastersofcoin.org requesting the link to the TaxSlayer software. |
| My return is Out of Scope, what can I do? | Yes. If you do not want to go to a paid preparer, see the directly above question and answer about doing your taxes yourself. |
