Tax time is usually known to be stressful. Whether you stress about filing, owing, or anything else, it’s definitely something that weighs on the mind of many people in America. However, there have been lots of efforts to make this process just overall more beneficial to the taxpayer. That is why in 2023 it’s important to know about some free filing support opportunities available on top of opportunities for taxpayers to get thousands back from filing!

Understanding Different Tax Support and Benefits

When we say thousands are available in tax benefits, we have to provide some context! There are different tax credit opportunities available that are able to provide benefits to those that file their taxes if they qualify. Besides tax credits, there are also other ways people can see some generous relief through taxes. 

Thousands in Tax Benefits Available

Remember, the best place to handle your taxes is with a tax professional. They will be able to guide you in the right direction and help you figure out some tax benefits that you may be able to take part of. However, this list can provide you some information on what’s out there! The following tax opportunities could provide some big bucks:

• Child Tax Credit (CTC)
• Student Loan Interest Deduction
• American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC)
• Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC)
• The Saver’s Credit
• Child and Dependent Care Credit
• Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
• Credit for the Elderly or Disabled
• Credit for Electric Plug-In Vehicles

Child Tax Credit (CTC)

Kids are expensive. That is why it should come as no surprise that there is an effort to provide some relief with this expense. For taxpayers that pay for most of the care for one child or more under the age of 17 years old, they may be able to benefit from this credit. For the 2023 tax year, taxpayers can get up to $2,000 per dependent!

Student Loan Interest Deduction

Student loans are no joke. The amount borrowed is already a lot. That amount, then to consider the interest rate? It’s a ton of money! That’s why it’s important to know that people who have student loans can deduct $2,500 at most of interest that they dealt with. 

American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC)

Students can get up to $2,500 through this tax credit. That’s because AOTC is an option for education costs that come from a student’s first four years of getting a higher education. Only qualifying expenses are able to qualify for this opportunity. Examples of this include:

• Tuition
• Classroom supplies
• Reading materials

Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC)

Education is such a big expense that it should come as no surprise that there are multiple tax relief options that aim to help. Taxpayers can claim the LLC for specific expenses that come from higher education courses. It can also apply to courses that just help a person learn job skills or improve upon them. This credit can provide a maximum of $2,000. 

The Saver’s Credit

Taxpayers that are considered low-income can benefit from this tax credit opportunity. Qualifying individuals that made contributions to any of the following accounts can deduct 50% of the amount they put in:

• SIMPLE
• SEP
• Traditional IRA
• Roth IRA
• 401(k)
• 403(b)
• Governmental 457(b) Plan
• ABLE Account

The most that this credit can help with is $2,000! So if a joint filing couple contributed $4,000 into one of the above accounts, they could get a $2,000 deduction. 

Child and Dependent Care Credit

Taking care of kids is hard enough already. Add in the fact that there are parents who do this while working at the same time, it can be even harder! The most amount that this credit can provide is:

• $3,000 for one dependent under 13 years old
• $6,000 for two or more dependents

Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)

This is a popular tax credit that already a lot of people are familiar with! This is popular because of just how much support it can provide. The maximum amount that certain taxpayers could get is $6,935. Remember, the exact amount will vary but this is the maximum limit. 

Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled

Whether an individual is at least 65 years old or receives disability benefits at any age, they may be able to benefit from this credit. The maximum amount that this credit can be worth is up to a whopping $7,500! 

Credit for Electric Plug-In Vehicles

Another high paying opportunity on this list is the credit for electric plug-in vehicles. Taxpayers can qualify for up to $7,500 if they have electric cars or electric motorcycles. The vehicles can be either for business or used personally!

Tax Filing Support

Now that you know about some credits, how can you actually benefit from them? Well, you need to file your taxes. Sadly, this can be easier said than done. The IRS realized that people could use a helping hand when it came to dealing with this process. For 2024, the official beginning of the tax season begins in January. The deadline to file these taxes is usually in April and can range between the 15th -18th. 

The IRS is providing tax filing support. First, they hired thousands of more staff with the goal of having them provide aid to taxpayers during this process. Besides that, they have tools like Free File that taxpayers can take advantage of.

What is Free File?

Through the IRS, Free File is a tool that allows taxpayers to file their federal income tax online with assistance. This assistance comes in the form of guided tax preparation either:

• At a partner site of the IRS
• Through Free File Fillable Forms

This filing support is not only easy and secure, but it is absolutely free for taxpayers that qualify. 

What is VITA and TCE?

While Free File is a great tool provided by the IRS, there are other tax filing opportunities that can be super helpful. The IRS has two programs:

• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)
• Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) 

Both programs aim to help taxpayers in their own unique way. When it comes to VITA, as of 2023 people that want to benefit need to either:

• Generally earn no more than $60,000
• Have a disability
• Struggle with the English language

On the flipside, when it comes to TCE, this filing assistance focuses on taxpayers that are at least 60 years old and provides senior-related tax support. 

In Conclusion

When it comes to dealing with taxes, it doesn’t need to be as stressful as it may seem. There are a variety of tax benefits that people may be able to tax advantage from. Not only that, the IRS aims to provide support when possible which is why it offers services like:

• Free File
• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)
• Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE)

Through the credits mentioned above (which totals over $30,000 in benefits!), as well as the help of tax support services, handling tax season can be affordable and even more beneficial than you may think.