LITC Tax Assistance from a Fresh Perspective

LITC’s, or Low-Income Taxpayer Clinics, are federally funded programs offered to assist taxpayers who have a tax controversy against the IRS. The services offered are free as long as the taxpayer falls within the eligibility guidelines. The LITC program at Inland Counties Legal Services was fortunate enough to have law students intern for their program this 2020 summer. The law students were able to see what LITC’s offer to the community and provide some insights from a fresh perspective. Here is what they had to say:

“I think tax is one of the most unexpected problems people may face. Although you are not familiar with the law, you mostly can stay out of trouble if you stay out of common “bad things” like assault or theft. However, as long as you are living in this country as a taxpayer, you cannot avoid tax law. Even though you were filing federal tax returns every year, sometimes you might fail to pay the additional tax, or not be able to pay the penalties that are due to the unpaid tax, or you might suddenly see a significant amount of tax you have to pay on the file. Thus, I believe Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic can benefit the low-income public very much if people know about the LITC’s services including public education, consultation, and representation regarding tax disputes with IRS.

 [Webinars]

I am a very shy person who hesitate to reach out to people to ask questions or consult my problem with others. For people like me, LITC’s webinars are very good resources to get information about tax problems. Inland Counties Legal Services’ LITC hosts webinars with Riverside County Law Library, therefore anyone can register for the webinar on the Library website. For the webinars, since it is open to everyone, people who are not eligible for LITC’s service can also attend and learn about tax issues. If you want to suggest a tax-related topic that you want to learn more about, you can suggest the topic through the webinar chat without revealing your face or voice. Our clinic also wants to hear about what topics people are interested in, so it will be a valuable feedback for us as well.

 [Consultation, Representation]

For people who are eligible for LITC’s consultation service, generally families earning less than $31,900 (1 person household) or $65,500 (4 people household), they can reach out to the clinic to talk about their situation. I sometimes see people asking for legal help on the internet, but most of the answers to those posts are vague like “it depends” and we are not even sure if that person has professional legal knowledge. ICLS’s Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic provides consultation and representation regarding federal tax disputes with free or small amount fee, therefore I believe it is the best way to get professional help with low cost, instead of asking random people on the internet. Although ICLS cannot help you with a tax return preparation, it can be a great resource for low-income public when you need help with tax problems such as debt settlement, fraudulent tax preparation, or identity theft.”

-          Ji Hye H., J.D. Candidate and Summer Intern for ICLS Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic

“Taxpayers who qualify for the services of a Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic will benefit from the competent legal representation they will receive from qualified attorneys who are dedicated to making sure that their clients receive the best possible outcome. The Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic ensures that a taxpayer’s rights are being protected and that tax issues are being properly resolved in order to avoid future complications. Taxpayers can feel secure and less stressed knowing that their tax issues are being properly handled by legal experts in the tax field. Tax issues are already complicated enough, so why go through it alone?”

-          Fernando R., J.D. Candidate and Summer Intern for ICLS Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic

 The next low-income taxpayer clinic is on August 25 at 3pm, and you can register HERE

Peter Y. Lin-Tsai, Esq.

Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic Director

Inland Counties Legal Services, Inc.

A Non-Profit 501(c)3 Corporation

1040 Iowa Ave, Suite 109

Riverside, CA 92507

(tel.)888-245-4257 ext.2565

(fax.)951-565-4206

[email protected]