With tax deadline looming, 26 free clinics are helping Londoners file on time | CBC News

Income tax season is in full swing, and free tax clinics are up and running across London to help guide people filing for the first time and to aid those with modest incomes ahead of the April 30 tax deadline.

Twenty-six clinics are in operation in the city, helping those with incomes under $35,000 and couples with a combined income under $45,000 with simple returns.

Five of the clinics are located in London Public Library branches, including the East London Branch, where high schooler Aidin Tenpas ventured out on Tuesday to get started on his first ever return. 

“I was trying to set up a CRA account, and I was told that I should visit a tax clinic before I’m able to actually set that up,” said Tenpas, who recently started his first job, working at a restaurant.

Tenpas said the idea of filing taxes makes him just a little nervous.

“I haven’t done it myself. The concept is somewhat new to me, but I don’t honestly feel too off-put by it. I understand that it’s an important thing that has to be done.”

The clinics are hosted by community organizations through the federal government’s Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP), and are stationed inside federal constituency offices, churches, and some local agencies.

The library says it’s not hosting the clinics at its branches, but is providing space to the organizations which are, including The London CPA Ontario Association, Argyle Community Association, Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre, and London InterCommunity Health.

Most of the clinics offer by-appointment services. However, some offer first-come, first-serve walk-ins, while others provide virtual or drop-in service where people can leave documents and pick up a completed return at a later time.

Some also offer the filing of past years taxes, and provide service in multiple languages, including English, French, Arabic, Cantonese, Hebrew, Hindi, Punjabi, Spanish, and others.

Volunteers are approved by the Canada Revenue Agency for various roles, such as tax preparer, or coordinator – a position that involves organizing the clinics and also filing returns.

Diane MacMillan is one of them. The retired banker has volunteered with the clinics for more than 20 years and is the coordinator at the East London and Crouch library branch clinics.

With inflation high and finances tight, it’s important such free clinics exist, especially for those whose income falls within the scope of CVITP, she said.

“That’s not much when you’ve got to factor in living accommodations, food… gas, everything else,” she said. 

The clinics are also beneficial for Canadians who don’t may not know their way around the tax system, or are unaware of the rebates and grants that could put money back in their pocket, she said.

“It’s nice to have somebody who knows how to do a tax return, a basic tax return. It’s just a little something that they can have done with a certain amount of expertise, and they don’t have to pay for it.”

Across the nation, federal tax clinics helped nearly 650,000 people file their tax returns for free, yielding them more than $1.7 billion in refunds, credit and benefit entitlements in 2022, according to the federal government