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Free tax preparation, advice available to military families in person or online

By 507th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs / Published January 28, 2015

A W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, waits on the desk as Staff Sgt. Benjamin Yost, 455th Air Expeditionary Wing paralegal as he assist Staff Sgt. Jonathan Lima an F-16, Fighting Falcon, crewchief prepare his state-tax return at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, 15 Feb. 2011. The legal office here is offering deployed servicemembers assistance with taxes by providing volunteer income tax assistance representatives. (Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael Voss)
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The Tinker Volunteer Income Tax Office (VITA) will be open on 3 Feb. to help with your tax return in person if you would like to talk to an advisor. They will begin taking appointments on 3 February 2015. Call 405-739-7754 to book a appointment. (Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael Voss)

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TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- With the new year comes the annual dread of tax-filing season and the confusion and stress that can go along with it, especially for military families whose tax returns can be further complicated by frequent relocations, involvement of rental properties and other aspects of military life.

To ease the burden, local volunteers here and the Defense Department are providing no-cost tax preparation to the military community.

The Tinker Volunteer Income Tax Office (VITA) will be open on 3 Feb. to help with your tax return in person if you would like to talk to an advisor.  They will begin taking appointments on 3 February 2015.  Call  405-739-7754 to book a appointment.

Location:  Building 1 (The entry is Door 3 on the west side of the building and there will be signs guiding visitors to the office)

Hours:  7:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 - 3:30 p.m. (open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (excluding federal holidays)

Requirements:  must have had minimum essential health care coverage for the entire tax year, an adjusted gross income of $80,000 or less, E-6 or below, O-3 or below, reservists on Title 10 orders and retirees who meet the above requirements.

What they prepare:  Oklahoma State returns in addition to the following federal forms:  1040-EZ, 1040A, Earned Income Credit, Form 8863 (Education Credits), Form 8812 (Additional Child Tax Credit), and Form 1040 with Schedule A, Itemized Deductions. 

What they cannot prepare:  Schedule D for those individuals with stock sales and Schedule C or Schedule C-EZ for those taxpayers with business income or with Forms 1099MISC.  Additionally, taxpayers with home businesses (such as Pampered Chef, Tupperware, etc.) and taxpayers who own rental property will need to seek help from other providers.

Please Bring with you:  military ID, social security cards and birth dates of taxpayers and dependents, W-2s, 1099s, investment income paperwork, powers of attorney (if applicable), names, addresses and EIN or SSN of day care providers (if applicable), and last year's income tax return.  Some taxpayers may also have to bring additional items.  Due to changes in tax forms, taxpayers claiming educational expenses will need to bring 1099-T with them to have their returns completed.  Taxpayers claiming an education credit for undergraduate school should also bring proof of the amount paid for books.  Taxpayers wishing to direct deposit their refund should bring a voided check with them to their appointments.  Noncustodial parents claiming a child as a dependent will need to bring a signed Form 8332 or a Divorce Decree giving them the exemption for that dependent for divorces prior to 2009.  Taxpayers who own their own homes should also bring the amount of real estate tax that they paid during 2014.

For those that want to go online for tax preparation, Military OneSource offers no-cost tax consultation and no-cost tax preparation and filing to service and family members, and reservists regardless of activation status, survivors, and separated service members until 180 days after their retirement, discharge or end-of-tour date, said Anthony Jackson, a Military OneSource program analyst.

Since it's online, the service is available to eligible tax-filers regardless of where they are. "They can do one federal and up to three state tax returns -- again, at no cost to the service or family member," Jackson said.

Tax experts also are available by phone at no cost for anyone who may have questions before they start using the online tax preparation software.

"You're getting individuals when you're talking -- tax consultants who are thoroughly educated on the military situation, no matter what it is," Jackson said. They also have knowledge of special tax exemptions for combat duty and other situations unique to the military.

The tax service being offered by Military OneSource is currently active at http://www.militaryonesource.mil/

Military OneSource was established by the DOD in 2002 to provide comprehensive information on military life free of charge.  (Nick Simeone, Defense Media Activity contributed to this report)