Other Ways To Get Help(p94)

You should get an answer in about 30 days. For the mailing address, call us at 1-800-829-1040. People who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and who have access to TTY/TDD equipment can call 1-800-829-4059. Deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals can also contact the IRS through relay services such as the Federal Relay Service available at www.gsa.gov/fedrelay. Do not send questions with your return.

You can find answers to many of your tax questions online. Go to www.irs.gov/individuals. Here are some of the methods you may want to try.

• Frequently asked questions. This section contains an extensive list of questions and answers. You can select your question by category or keyword.
• Tax trails. This is an interactive section which asks questions you can answer by selecting Yes or No.
• Main index of tax topics. This is an online version of the TeleTax topics.
• Interactive Tax Assistant (ITA). The ITA provides answers to certain tax law questions using a probe and response process.

If you need assistance preparing your return, visit the nearest Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) or Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) site in your community. There are thousands of sites nationwide and each site is staffed by volunteers who are trained and certified to prepare federal income tax returns. VITA sites are also available at international and domestic military installations.

Volunteers in this program must adhere to strict quality and ethical standards and pass a certification test each year. The VITA Program generally offers free tax help to people who make $50,000 or less and need assistance in preparing their own tax return. The TCE Program offers free tax help for all, with priority assistance to people who are 60 years of age and older, specializing in questions about pensions and retirement issues unique to seniors.

Free electronic filing is offered and volunteers will help you claim the earned income credit, child tax credit, credit for the elderly, and other credits and deductions you can take.

These are some of the items to bring to the VITA/TCE site to have your tax return prepared.

• Proof of identification.
• Social security cards for you, your spouse and dependents and/or a social security number verification letter issued by the Social Security Administration.
• Individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) assignment letter for you, your spouse and dependents.
• Proof of foreign status, if applying for an ITIN.
• Birth dates for you, your spouse, and any dependents.
• Form(s) W-2, W-2G, 1099-INT, 1099-DIV, and 1099-R.
• A copy of your 2011 federal and state returns, if available.
• A blank check or anything that shows your bank routing and account numbers for direct deposit.
• Total paid to daycare provider and the daycare provider's tax identification number (the provider's social security number or the provider's business employer identification number).
• To file taxes electronically on a joint return, both spouses must be present to sign the required forms.

For more information on these programs and a location in your community, go to IRS.gov and enter keyword VITA in the search box. You may also contact us at 1-800-829-1040. To locate the nearest AARP Tax-Aide site, visit AARP’s website at www.aarp.org/money/taxaide or call 1-888-227-7669.

You can get face-to-face help solving tax problems most business days in IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers. An employee can explain IRS letters, request adjustments to your account, or help you set up a payment plan. To find the number to call your local TAC, go to www.irs.gov/uac/Contact-Your-Local-IRS-Office-1 or look in the phone book under United States Government, Internal Revenue Service.

The IRS Video portal www.IRSvideos.gov contains video and audio presentations on topics of interest to small businesses, individuals, and tax professionals. You will find video clips of tax topics, archived versions of live panel discussions and Webinars, and audio archives of tax practitioner phone forums.

People who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and who have access to TTY/TDD equipment can call 1-800-829-4059. Deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals can also contact the IRS through relay services such as the Federal Relay Service available at www.gsa.gov/fedrelay. Braille materials are available at libraries that have special services for people with disabilities.

To better serve taxpayers whose native language is not English, we have products and services in various languages.

For Spanish speaking taxpayers, we have:

• Spanish Publication 17, El Impuesto Federal sobre los Ingresos, and
• www.irs.gov/espanol.

We also offer a Basic Tax Responsibilities CD/DVD in the following languages.

• Spanish.
• Chinese.
• Vietnamese.
• Korean.
• Russian.

To get a copy of this CD/DVD, call the National Distribution Center at 1-800-829-3676 and ask for Pub. 4580 in your language.