Create those E-files early!

Feb 28 2008 Why creating those E-files early will simply life for you!


Creating the e-file before printing out the 8879s is helpful because that way the DCNs will appear on the 8879 rather than you filling it in by hand later in the tiny space available for it. However, you will need to assure your volunteers that it would not be the end of the world if the taxpayer changes his or her mind about e-filing with you. This fear of accidentally sending the e-file to the IRS seems to have its origin in the TaxWise training with undue emphasis on the importance of filling accurate e-files. Volunteers need to be given the confidence and the requirement to create an e-file even if it has to be changed later, so that you as the transmitter can be sure that at some point the return was ready for filing, and it will also help the volunteer get rid of some of those errors. The reality is that e-files need to be proactively sent rather than be sent automatically. The ironic part is that the login requirements for transmitting and accepting acknowledgements is much less stringent than for logging in to the TaxWise support website or TaxWise University.

State Returns after Federal returns and IT saavy volunteers

http://www.vita-volunteers.org/survival_guide_more.htm

Feb 27 2008. Read why it makes sense to file the State returns after the Federal returns are accepted, and how motivated IT Savvy Volunteers can help improve your operations.

Highlights of Economic Stimulus Act

http://www.vita-volunteers.org/Economic_Stimulus_%20Payments(Rebates).htm
Feb 20 2008: Highlights on information of the Economic Stimulus Act and the requirement that taxpayers need to file 2007 returns in order to qualify for rebates ranging from $300-$600 per taxpayer.

Launch of VITA Volunteer Site Coordinators Feed

Feb 24 2008: Purpose of this feed is to publish tips and tricks that help the survival of VITA Site Coordinators. Content comes from observing what happens in the trenches of vounteer VITA sites rather than from the rarefied atmospheres in the upper reaches of the ivory towers of the organization. As such the content is of a practical nature on what is successful to get the work done, keeping in mind that the ideal is to have excellent quality of output for the site.

Tips come from Site Coordinators. If there is a tip, trick or comment you would like to share, this is a perfect way to share it among the other VITA Coordinators facing similar problems.

While it says Coordinators, it is expected to include information for the Efile Transmitters using TaxWise as well.

IRS Link and Learn Income Taxes now available

Obtain the URLs to find out how to train online to prepare taxes and get certfied by the IRS

Please note that this was posted in February 2008.  If you happen to get here because you are looking for the current Link and Learn Income Tax, please go to http://www.vita-volunteers.org/ or to a more recent posting on this blog at

http://vita-volunteers.blogspot.com/2008/10/link-and-learn-taxes-for-2009-2008-tax.html