How to Start a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Site
Starting a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Site
1. Start advertising the site(s) in December and use various means to do this.
2. Obtain a good location for the site so that it has visibility.
3. Utilize the job descriptions and forms from this Web site for your VITA site.
4. Open the location towards the end of January or early February.
5. Organize the site into three sections: Administrative, Tax Return Preparation, and Quality Review.
6. Assign volunteers to each area and make them responsible for the statistical data at the end of the day.
7. Try to review the tax returns before they are given to the taxpayers in order to minimize errors.
8. Send the data sheets to IRS on a weekly basis and keep a copy for yourself. Supervise and help the volunteers when they encounter difficulties.
9. Periodically review the volunteers' interviewing techniques.
10. Do not let the volunteers keep any documents or papers that belong to the taxpayers.
11. Inform the volunteers that all information received from the taxpayers is confidential.
12. Emphasize to the volunteers that they cannot charge for this service.
13. Maintain adequate control of the inventory of forms, supplies, etc.
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