Free Tax Return Help to Those on Welfare

[LivinginKelowna]

Now, I am all for helping people out who are unable to provide for themselves due to circumstances beyond their control. Welfare, in my opinion, should be a means to help a person get back on their feet so that they can be productive, contributing members of society. Welfare should not be a way of life, where generation after generation receive it.

If the system were to be implemented to further help those that are helping themselves, striving for the day, through personal sacrifice and hard work, that they are able to support themselves and their families then I say yes. Give them this.

Now if the opposite is true, that it is just another handout to those who are to lazy to help themselves, then no. Sorry.

[coffeeFreak]

Here is the article:

Free tax help for those on welfare?
by Castanet Staff - Story: 60015
Feb 7, 2011 / 5:15 pm

The B.C. government and H&R Block are teaming up to ensure people on income assistance file their taxes in order to get all the tax breaks available to them.

About one-quarter of the people on welfare don't file tax returns and are missing out on benefits like HST credits and child tax credits, Social Development Minister Kevin Krueger said in a release Monday.
[url]
http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-st ... .htm#60015[/url]

Here is another one of those "stupid" Liberal government decisions -- act before they research AND I wonder how much this is going to cost the taxpayers (H&R Block are not cheap). There are already several options for free income tax returns to be completed. Here is a list of some of software links on the Canada Revenue Agency Netfile page:

Certified Software for the 2011 NETFILE Program (2010 tax return)
Windows:
FutureTax 2010, H & R Block At Home, myTaxExpress, TaxFreeway, Taxtron, TurboTax (previously QuickTax), UDoTaxes, UFile
Web applications: (for Windows and Macintosh)
EachTax.com, TaxChopper 2010 from CuteTax, WebTax4U.ca

View the software developers' Web site to see if you qualify for their free offerings.
http://www.netfile.gc.ca/sftwr-eng.html

Here are two that offer free services (I didn't check any others listed above):

TurboTax (previously Quick Tax) now offers 2 totally free ways for many Canadians to prepare their taxes: TurboTax Free Online Edition and TurboTax Student Online Edition. Find out if you qualify to use either solution here.

TURBOTAX FREE ONLINE EDITION - For Income-Only Tax Returns
You can use TurboTax Free Online Edition if:

* You Earned Income: You receive T-slips, like T4s & T4As. You may have have tip income and/or pension income.
o You are not self-employed.
o You do not have investment income or RRSPs.
o You have not made any charitable donations or investments.
* You Have Simple Deductions: You receive only 'standard' federal & provincial deductions.

TURBOTAX STUDENT ONLINE EDITION - For Post-Secondary Student Tax Returns
You can use TurboTax Student Online Edition if:

* You Were a Student in 2010: You paid tuition fees during the 2010 calendar year and you hold a T2202A, TL11 or its equivalent.
* You Made Under $20K: Your household income does not exceed $20,000 gross (that is, before taxes).

If You Don't Qualify...
You can still start your tax return with either free online edition... If, when you're doing your taxes, TurboTax finds that you don't meet the "free" qualifications, you'll be given the choice to move into the right TurboTax solution for your needs (requires payment).
[url]
http://turbotax.intuit.ca/personal-tax- ... online.jsp[/url]

OR

UDoTaxes
Canadian Personal Income Tax Preparation Software

* Totally FREE ! No license key is required on version 2010
The certified version is released! click here go to download page.
* NETFILE and 2D Bar Code Certified by CRA

What is UDoTaxes?

UDoTaxes is a simple, easy-to-use, and elegant canadian income tax software, which process your tax return quickly and efficiently. UDoTaxes allows you to manage your personal tax information and create ".tax" file which can be submitted at CRA's website by using NETFILE, or print and mail in your tax return. Manually processing a tax return with a calculator is a time consuming and error-prone task, but UDoTaxes has made your tax filing process a lot faster.
Download Free, Use Free
You can download and use UDoTaxes for free.

http://www.udotaxes.com/eng/index.htm

[oneh2obabe]

True, there is a variety of free tax software packages to choose from but not everybody on social assistance has internet and a computer or can easily get to the few agencies in town that offer free returns. It's not just one trip - original trip to drop off T4's, etc. and give info to the agency - another trip to pickup the completed return.

I prepare tax returns for about 15 people in my area ... some on disability, some on social assistance and the balance can be classified as low-income (part-time jobs). Takes very little time and as long as they have their access code, I file online and they receive their refund in 10-15 days. Do I charge them? No, takes maybe 10-20 minutes of my time for each person. Most try to pay me $10 or whatever they can afford but as far as I'm concerned, they can put the money to better use.

[grammafreddy]

It's not just welfare recipients who can get their tax returns done at H&R for free - anyone under $20,000 gross income can. This isn't something new - they have been doing it for a number of years now.

I have no problem with it.

[NAB]

It's not just welfare recipients who can get their tax returns done at H&R for free - anyone under $20,000 gross income can. This isn't something new - they have been doing it for a number of years now.

I have no problem with it.

Nor I. I have been helping one individual on social services file regularly and on time for almost 5 years now and the progress is amazing. Also, we mustn't forget (although its not a BC program) there is a federal program that promotes volunteer assistance to people who struggle with filing income tax returns. I don't know why BC would try to accomplish it through a commercial enterprise such as H&R Block.

Nab

[coffeeFreak]

The problem I see, is that our govt is going to "contract" H&R Block to provide a service that is already available for free to anyone with a lower income...and I am assuming H&R services won't be cheap.

[The Green Barbarian]

The problem I see, is that our govt is going to "contract" H&R Block to provide a service that is already available for free to anyone with a lower income...and I am assuming H&R services won't be cheap.

of all the things to pick on the Liberals about, this one seems pretty weak to me. I for one am glad that there is a place for them to go as they need help, and saying that they can "just get online" to do their taxes is just plain ignorant. Good on the poster that helps people file for free - you are what this community needs - more people helping people and less government helping people. People can do it much better than government.

[silivren]

They are trying to advertise this as beneficial to the welfare recepient but it also benefits the government. Welfare recepients do not receive income tax refunds as they do not pay income tax on welfare income. But if you have children and you file for a tax return welfare gets to collect your national child benefit (which is part of the child tax credit).
Anyone can file their income taxes for free and what the government shold be doing is educating people how to do this on their own in layman's terms. My sister is a disabled dependant and I showed my mom how to file her income tax in 10 minutes flat.

[The Green Barbarian]

They are trying to advertise this as beneficial to the welfare recepient but it also benefits the government. Welfare recepients do not receive income tax refunds as they do not pay income tax on welfare income. But if you have children and you file for a tax return welfare gets to collect your national child benefit (which is part of the child tax credit).
Anyone can file their income taxes for free and what the government shold be doing is educating people how to do this on their own in layman's terms. My sister is a disabled dependant and I showed my mom how to file her income tax in 10 minutes flat.

Not sure where you went to school but in my high school they showed us how to file a tax return, so in essence the government did show us how to fill in a tax return. I honestly don't think that it is the government's responsiblity to "educate people on how to fill in a tax return" - it is extremely easy as long as you are literate - we don't need even more bureaucrats appointed by the nanny state to show people how to do it - people just need to take some personal responsiblity and learn it themselves or have someone show them how to do it. I personally have helped many friends and once I've showed them they haven't need my help again.

[Queen K]

Green Barbarian, it 's not necessarily a matter of where someone goes to school.

Not sure of your age. but when I was in high school, Grad 1982, no one in their right mind was teaching income tax filing as part of the curriculum. It just wasn't done. Good for the younger generation for needing their hand held by the government for such things.

There is another reason why the BC government needs people on welfare and disability to file their income taxes, accountability. And if sometime down the road someone can prove the tax filer was making more than declared, a paper trail of fraud can be established. That can not be done if no paper trail is established in the first place or for a very long time.

[NAB]

I have no doubt that math associated with real world issues like basic financial management, filling out government forms such as filing income tax should be taught in secondary school, as well as the "why" of it. It is part of growing up and becoming a participating member of society.

But we have to recognize that even then it is not as simple for many folk as some would like to believe, and even worse for those who face( d) circumstances that lead to dropping out of school, particularly if their residence address chances frequently (if they even have one at all).

But it's not all about youth getting started out on the right track and learning how. There are people out there in their fifties, sixties, and even older who have never managed their own income tax filing, have become disconnected from the system, are unaware of the benefits that come with regular filing and residence stability, and have learned to live and survive somehow as "non-entities". Some are even quite happy that the government doesn't even know they exist.

Once such an individual becomes convinced that they need to become part of the system (usually because of illness or loss of the back room support(s ) they have become accustomed to), it can take five years or more of regular assistance and filing to help them get squared away with CRA and various provincial agencies. I don't think many realize that people in such situations cannot just walk into H & R Block, have a tax return filed, and all will be good until next year. Bandaid ideas like that just won't work IMO.

And God help the individual who fell through the cracks for some extended period for whatever reason, was convinced to file a return or get help to file one, ....only to find out that they owe the government a chunk of money and that it will be clawed back from any benefits due them over how ever many years it takes until paid up, even though the reason they owe that money was due to someone else's negligence or worse, ...like someone taking advantage of them.

Nab

[The Green Barbarian]

Green Barbarian, it 's not necessarily a matter of where someone goes to school.

Not sure of your age. but when I was in high school, Grad 1982, no one in their right mind was teaching income tax filing as part of the curriculum. It just wasn't done. Good for the younger generation for needing their hand held by the government for such things.

There is another reason why the BC government needs people on welfare and disability to file their income taxes, accountability. And if sometime down the road someone can prove the tax filer was making more than declared, a paper trail of fraud can be established. That can not be done if no paper trail is established in the first place or for a very long time.

hmmm - well I'm obviously not much younger than you - we had a class called "Business" or something like that, which taught us life skills like how to do a home budget, how to fill out a credit card application, and how to file a tax return. I believe one of our final exams was completing a personal tax return from info we were given. At the time the 15 year old mind judges the class of course as "stupid" and a waste of time, but it was actually one of the best classes for teaching real practical applications that you would need in the real world. I hope they still have that class in place.

[Captain Awesome]

I hope they still have that class in place.

I think you bring up a good point - our educational system DOESN'T teach kids to be responsible with their money, DOESN'T teach importance of paying taxes, DOESN'T teach realities of budgeting and living within your means. I find it funny (and horrible at the same time) that on their first day, all university/college students are being given VISA/MC/AMEX application forms. Here, fill this out and we'll mail you a credit card. Can you imagine worst candidate for Visa card than fresh out of high school underemployed college students?

[The Green Barbarian]

I hope they still have that class in place.

I think you bring up a good point - our educational system DOESN'T teach kids to be responsible with their money, DOESN'T teach importance of paying taxes, DOESN'T teach realities of budgeting and living within your means. I find it funny (and horrible at the same time) that on their first day, all university/college students are being given VISA/MC/AMEX application forms. Here, fill this out and we'll mail you a credit card. Can you imagine worst candidate for Visa card than fresh out of high school underemployed college students?

Urbane could probably weigh in here with some thoughts - I would be curious to know how many teachers would even know how to do these things nowadays. Also - teaching kids to be responsible with money might hurt their self-esteem, and we all know how self-esteem trumps everything else in the educational system we have now.

http://www.albertaprimetime.com/Stories.aspx?pd=2008