In Waterloo Region, many community based agencies provide free income tax clinics and services to low-income individuals during tax season.
Services are provided free of charge, and your taxes will be competed by a trained volunteer in cooperation with the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program.
For assistance with your taxes outside of 'tax season' or for help with multi-year returns please connect with our Financial Inclusion Outreach Worker at the Money Matters Help Desk. A helpful checklist can be found here.
Should I file an Income Tax Return?
You might think that if you are a low- or zero- income earner that there is no need to file your income tax return. But by not filing a return, you may lose out on hundreds or thousands of dollars in lost benefits and credits that are linked to income tax return completion.
More and more benefits are being distributed through the tax system - and the rate at which these benefits are being paid out is changing too.
If you are a low-income individual or family, you may be used to receiving a lump sum upon completion of your return that represents the sum total of certain benefits or credits awarded on the year. The Ontario Sales Tax Credit, Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit, and the Northern Ontario Energy Credit will be allocated to recipients on a monthly basis as part of the Ontario Trillium Benefit. You need to have filed a current tax return in order to receive these funds. If you do not file a return, no funds will be sent.
For more detailed information on changes to benefits and credits and the way in which they are allocated please read the bulletin produced by the Income Security Advocacy Centre in the links below.
For a schedule of benefit payments, please visit the Ontario Ministry of Finance.
