More than 2,500 taxpayers have already scheduled an appointment to have their 2014 tax returns completed by Tax-Aide volunteers using the new online appointment system. In-person appointments (for any of the sites except Fruitland Park) can be made at any of the following locations on the dates/times listed below:
Lady Lake Library: Monday, Jan. 26 (10 a.m.-noon), Tuesday and Wednesday, Jan. 27 and Jan. 28 (10 a.m.-2 p.m.), Thursday, Jan. 29 (9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.), Friday Jan. 30Â (2 to 4 p.m.)
Colony Cottage Rec Center Monday to Saturday, Jan. 26 thru 31 (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.)
Paradise Rec Center Monday, Jan. 26 (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.)
Mulberry Grove Rec Center Monday, Jan. 26Â (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.)
La Hacienda Rec Center Tuesday, January 27 (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.)
How do I make an appointment online? Visit the Tax-Aide website at www.villagestaxaide.com and click on the Appointments tab, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click on the red Appointments button. There is also a direct link to the scheduling system:
https://fl2d45taxaide.
Will I get a confirmation? Right after you schedule the appointment, you should receive a confirmation. If you don’t get one, please check your spam folder. You will also get a reminder email three days before your appointment.
How do I reschedule or cancel? A link to either reschedule or cancel an appointment can be found in the confirmation email.  Anyone who is having problems rescheduling an appointment should contact: appointments@villagestaxaide.com for assistance. Quite a few duplicate appointments are being made; so if you make an appointment and don’t get a confirmation, please don’t make another appointment.  Check your spam folder to see if the confirmation is there. If not, send Tax-Aede an email and Tax-Aide will assist you.
What do I need to bring to my appointment? Everyone who has made an appointment online should download, print, and complete the Intake and Interview Form. Anyone who is unable to print the form can pick one up at Colony Cottage, Mulberry Grove, Paradise or La Hacienda Rec Centers, the Sumter County Libraries at Pinellas or Belvedere, or the Lady Lake Library. The confirmation email has a list of items to bring to your appointment; the same information is also found on the Tax-Aide website (Appointments Tab).
What’s new this year? This year there will be a few changes to ensure our taxpayers comply with the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.
Tax-Aide will need to ask everyone about his or her insurance coverage. It’s a new section on the Intake and Interview form as well. “We expect the majority of our taxpayers to have had full year coverage. Medicare, Medicaid, private health insurance (Blue Cross, United Healthcare, etc), employer health plans (including retiree health insurance and COBRA), Tricare, VA and Federal Employees Health Benefits all provide Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC) required by the ACA.  Everyone without either full year MEC or an exemption may have to pay a Shared Responsibility Payment (SRP); it will be calculated during their return preparation process.  Anyone who does not have to file a return based on their income level does not have to file solely to claim an exemption or make a SRP; if they do file (to get a refund of withholding for example), they will get an exemption from paying the SRP,” said Jennifer Ford of Tax-Aide.
Anyone who purchased insurance through the federal (or state) Marketplace will receive a Form 1095-A.
“We will need that in order to complete their return, so anyone in that situation should wait until late February to schedule an appointment to allow time to receive their 1095-A.  We will use that form to reconcile any advance Premium Tax Credit they may have received.  Anyone who would didn’t need to file a return previously due to their income level, but purchased their insurance through the Marketplace (federal or state), will now have to file,” Ford said.
In previous years, Tax-Aide was unable to complete returns for taxpayers who had received long term care (LTC) benefits paid from a LTC policy.
“This year that is in-scope for our program, so if they have received a Form 1099-LTC, we can prepare their return as long as everything else is in scope,” Ford said.
What if I don’t know whether you will be able to do my return? On the Tax-Aide website, Services Tab, there is a list of items that we can and cannot help you with. “Our volunteers are not trained on all forms and schedules, so can prepare only those for which they have received training,” Ford said.
What locations are available? There are Tax-Aide locations at Colony Cottage, Mulberry Grove, La Hacienda and Paradise Recreation Centers in The Villages; Lady Lake and Fruitland Park libraries; Sumter County libraries at Pinellas Plaza, Belvedere, Lake Panasoffkee, and Webster; and Wildwood Community Center. A list of sites with addresses and days/hours of operation can be found the Tax-Aide website (Appointments Tab) as well as on the appointment scheduling system home page.
What if I have questions? Contact us at appointments@villagestaxaide.com!
