STCA$H Homepage

Southern Tier CA$H (Creating Assets, Savings and Hope) is an IRS sponsored Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, led by Arbor Housing and Development, offering free tax help, to people who generally make $55,000 or less, persons with disabilities and limited English speaking taxpayers who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns, IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing to qualified individuals.

Questions on the new Tax Reform? For detailed information, visit the IRS Tax Reform page

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) Information The IRS issued a new publication to help taxpayers learn about tax reform and how it affects their taxes. Pub 5307 - Tax Reform Basics for Individuals and Families provides information to help individual taxpayers understand the new law, take action - if necessary - and comply with your federal tax return filing requirements.Tax Reform Provisions that Affect Individuals

Tips to Get the Most Value from Your Tax Refund

• Pay down your debt. Use your refund for some much needed debt relief. Pay off your credit card balance. If you have an outstanding balance on more than one credit card, try to pay off the smaller, high-interest rate balances first. That will free up more funds to put toward larger balances. Alternatively, you can apply your refund toward other debts, like a car loan or a home equity loan.
• Save for a rainy day. Why not give yourself an even bigger return on your tax refund by putting the money into a savings account, CD, retirement fund, or purchasing a tax time savings bond? Your tax refund will continue to grow if you put it into savings or invest the money. It's always helpful to have a savings account to draw from when a major car repair bill, medical emergency or other unexpected expense comes along. That way, you don't have to borrow money and add to your debt-load.
• Consider your financial goals. Trying to save for a house or car down payment? Hope to contribute to your child's college tuition? Consider applying your tax refund toward these goals. If you don't yet have a set of short-term and long-term financial goals, put one together. You'll be more conscientious about how you spend your refund or any other extra money that comes your way.

Filing Your Own Taxes
United Way offers a FREE online filing service that you can use anywhere. MyFreeTaxes.com is a tool (H&R Block software) for people who made $66,000 or less in combined Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) in 2018. You can prepare and file both federal and state taxes at no cost, and claim valuable tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Just click the orange button for "Login", then click "Go to H&R Block" to go the to website to create your account, or login to your existing account.

To ensure that you are filing for free - please use the online software available on the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance Free File Alliance Webpage.

More Tax Information