It's that time of year again. Tax season is upon the United States. Two free tax centers will open on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall in Bldgs. 406 on McNair Road and 29 on U.S. Military Road, for retirees, active duty servicemembers and their Family members.
For filing purposes, both tax centers request the same documentation to include a Military ID, a cancelled or voided check, all W-2 forms, all 1099 and 1098 forms, social security numbers for all Family members, documentation from day care providers, all documents supporting deductions and credits and a copy of 2010 state and federal return and power of attorney paperwork.
With a grand opening ceremony on Jan. 31, Bldg. 406 on McNair Road will officially open to the public on Feb. 1, said Capt. Joseph DeFlorio, tax attorney. He added that the tax center will start accepting appointments Jan. 23. Appointments can be made between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. with the last walk-in appointment of the day at 4 p.m.
The Bldg. 29 tax center will be located in room 105 and will open to the public on Jan. 23. Operation hours will be between 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
Although the opening dates and work times differ, both centers maintain the same records and perform a variety of tax needs.
"We recommend -- especially if they didn't file here last year -- to bring their prior year's return," said DeFlorio.
Also of note, international income throughout the year needs to have already been converted to U.S. currency using the exchange rate for the location and time of the earning prior to going to the tax center.
Due to changes in ID cards, government issued social security cards will be required. If the social security card is inaccessible, an application can be submitted to the Social Security Administration office for a new card.
It is important to note that the Bldg. 406 center, having less staff than in previous years, will not be offering a full extent of services as provided in previous years. One example of the change is people with rental properties and private businesses will need to go to a different tax center.
The tax center team encourages going to another military Volunteer Income Tax Assistance site such as Bldg. 29 that can acommodate you.
Another option is going to a private tax service center or a tax preparation service online. Other VITA sites in the area include: Fort Meade, Fort Belvoir, Marine Corps Base Quantico and Joint Base Andrews.
For those who are deployed or have deployed spouses, there is an automatic extension on taxes. "The clock stops when they are deployed. They get the entire portion of tax season they miss in addition to 180 days [to file]," said DeFlorio.
"Anything other than a 1040ez form [they] will need to call ahead for an appointment," said DeFlorio. As of now, the Bldg. 29 tax center is taking mainly walk-ins but will accept appointments for the more complex tax returns, said Sgt. Jamaal Garner, Bldg. 29 tax center.
For questions regarding taxes, check the IRS.gov website. For any questions regarding whether a VITA site will complete your taxes, see the complete list of tax centers and information below.
Bldg. 406 - 703-696-1040, Bldg. 29 - 703-693-7001, Fort Meade- 301-677-9762, Marine Corps Base Quantico- 703-432-2073.
Fort Belvoir will accept appointments via the Internet at www.belvoirarmy.mil/sja/newsite/Lad/tax.asp. Joint Base Andrews will not have a working tax center number until the last week of January.
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