REGINA – Tax time can be a trying time for many people but some volunteers at the Salvation Army are now helping out with the paper work.
The Haven of Hope kicked off its Community Volunteer Income Tax Program Monday, which runs until the end of April.
A steady line up of people turned out in the morning to have their taxes filed free of charge.
The program is designed to help any individual with an income under $30, 000 or a family with an income under $40, 000, plus $2, 500 per dependent.
The executive director of the Haven of Hope ministries, Major Dough Binner, said the program does more than help people maneuver what can be tricky paper work.
“For many of our clients, filling an income tax on a regular basis and getting that in on time means they are going to get their child tax credits and their benefits from the government, they may otherwise miss out on,” he added.
2015 is the last year the government will be mailing out income tax cheques before switching to direct deposit in 2016.
Binner said the move could pose a challenge to many of their clients, so volunteers are informing people to set up a permanent bank account before next tax season.
Last year volunteers completed 1,400 income tax returns which is rewarding for long time volunteer, Major Joan McCarthee.
She said often the elderly and newcomers to Canada who don’t speak English well benefit significantly from the program.
“They are very appreciative of what you do to help them and if I can help them get back a little bit of money even if it’s GST then that’s just great!”
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