How to file your state and federal taxes for free in Connecticut in 2023

Wheeler Cowperthwaite, The Bulletin
·8 min read

The tax filing season officially started on Jan. 23 (it ends on April 18 for federal and Connecticut filings), which means employers, banks, brokerages and financial technology companies are sending out tax forms and advertisements for tax preparation software are flooding the Internet and airwaves.

There are three free ways to file your taxes this year. For most people, you can file your state and federal returns for free online, so long as your adjusted gross income is below $73,000, part of the IRS's "free file" program. The full list is available on the IRS's website at https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile.

While eight companies are participating in the program this year, just three offer free preparation of Connecticut tax returns.

2023 tax season guide for new parents:What to know about the Child Tax Credit and more

People and families with an adjusted gross income of $60,000 and lower can utilize the IRS's volunteer tax preparer program (known as VITA), where IRS-trained volunteers prepare taxes for free, including in languages other than English, like Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Arabic, French, Korean, Mandarin and Russian. More on that below.

Finally, the IRS offers free fillable forms with the caveats that there is no step-by-step guidance, it offers limited basic calculations, and does not support any state tax filings.

How do I know if I qualify for the free file programs?

Depending on the provider, the IRS Free File tops out at an adjusted gross income of $73,000 a year. Since it is adjusted gross income, that means it's your income for the year minus contributions to pre-tax retirement accounts like 401(k)s and 403(b)s.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program is available to those with an adjusted gross income of $60,000 or less in 2022.

Filing your taxes for free via IRS Free File

For most people, the easiest way to file a federal and state tax return for free is to use one of the programs offered by the "Free File Alliance," an agreement that started in 2002 between the IRS and a group of for-profit tax preparation companies.

IRS Free File:Browse all the free tax filing options offered through the IRS Free File program

While the IRS bills the "Free File" programs as being open to people with an adjusted gross income of $73,000 or less, one program, TaxAct, offers free tax preparation for most people making that much in Connecticut, along with free state tax returns. For those with a maximum adjusted gross income of $41,000, there are an additional two options.

Tax backlog:IRS tax backlog smaller leading into 2023 tax season than it was in 2022

For those who live in Connecticut but work in a surrounding state other than New Hampshire, that means filing three total tax returns − one federal, one for Connecticut, and one for the state where they work. The programs vary on which states allow one to file a free tax return. That information is below.

TaxAct

TaxAct allows those 20 to 58, with an adjusted gross income cap of $73,000, to file their federal tax return for free as well as their Connecticut tax return for free. For active duty military, the only restriction is the $73,000 income limit.

For those who work in neighboring states but live in Connecticut, it also allows free state returns for Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire, but not Massachusetts or New York. State returns for other states cost "no more than $54.95."

TaxAct has a second option for those 67 and older, with an adjusted gross income between $65,001 and $73,000. This option allows for free state returns in Maine, Vermont, Rhode Island and Connecticut but not New York or Massachusetts.

FreeTaxUSA

FreeTaxUSA allows anyone with an adjusted gross income under $41,000 to file free federal and state tax returns. For active duty military, the limit is $73,000.

OnLine Taxes

OnLine Taxes, which also goes by the name OLT, allows anyone with an adjusted gross income under $41,000 to file free federal and state tax returns.

For those 67 and older, the income limit is $73,000, with free state returns in Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Vermont but not New York or Massachusetts.

What is the Free File Alliance?

The "Free File Alliance" is an agreement that started in 2002 between the IRS and a group of for-profit tax preparation companies. Until 2019, the IRS agreed to not create a government-run system for people to easily prepare their taxes and in exchange, the companies promised to provide free online filing to low- and middle-class taxpayers.

When the IRS signed the latest "Free File Alliance" agreement in 2019, it dropped its commitment to not create a competing tax filing system, as ProPublica reported in 2019.

Help with Connecticut tax problems

The University of Connecticut School of Law runs a tax clinic, to give free legal advice to "low-income taxpayers."

"Law students enrolled in the clinic work with the clinic faculty to represent more than 100 clients each year," according to the tax clinic website.

The clinic also helps people who are having problems getting refunds, with audits, back taxes and tax court petitions. The tax clinic does not prepare taxes, according to its website.

The clinic can be contacted at 860-570-5165.

The tax clinic yearly income limits are based on family size:

  • 1 person: $33,975

  • 2 people: $45,775

  • 3 people: $57,575

  • 4 people: $69,375

  • 5 people: $81,175

  • 6 people: $92,975

Free tax help is available to lower-income residents through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program

Those with an adjusted gross income at or below $60,000 can receive free tax preparation services from trained volunteers throughout the state, part of the national Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, or VITA, program.

Tax assistance is offered in multiple languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Arabic, French, Korean, Mandarin and Russian.

The IRS offers a location locator based on zip code, as does 2-1-1 of Connecticut.

A non-exhaustive list of where to get free tax assistance in Connecticut if you qualify

  • East Hartford VITA, 840 Main Street, East Hartford, 860-290-4329

  • Manchester VITA, 78 N Main St, Manchester, 860-236-4511

  • The Village South, 331 Wethersfield Ave, 860-236-4511

  • Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St, Hartford, 860-695-6300

  • Trinfo Cafe, 1300 Broad Street, Hartford, 860-297-2127

  • South Windsor Public Library, 1550 Sullivan Ave, South Windsor, 860-644-1541

  • Urban League, 140 Woodland St, Hartford, 860-236-4511

  • Upper Albany Neighborhood Coll, 1229 Albany Ave, Hartford, 860-724-6703

  • NEAT, 654 Main St, Middletown, 800-203-1234

  • Windsor Public Library, 323 Broad Street, Windsor, 860-285-1910

  • YWCA East Side Community Center, 600 East Street, New Britain, 860-356-2000

  • HRA North Oak Community Center, 35 Oak Street New Britain, 860-356-2000

  • MARC, 25 Industrial Park Rd, Middletown, 800-203-1234

  • HRA New Britain High School, 110 Mill Street, Room 534, New Britain, 860-225-1084

  • HRA Arch Street Neighborhood Center, 336 Arch Street, New Britain, 860-356-2000

  • Vernon Town Hall/Social Services, 14 Park Place, Vernon Rockville, 860-356-2000

  • HRA Mobile VITA, 180 Clinton Street, New Britain, 860-356-

  • Meriden Public Library, 105 Miller Street, Meriden, 860-356-2000

  • Windham Heights Learning Center, 70 Boston Post Road, Willimantic, 860-236-4511

  • United Way of Bristol, 440 North Main Street, Suite D, Bristol, 860-356-

  • HRA Bristol VITA, 55 South Street, Bristol, 860-356-2000

  • Asnuntuck Community College, 170 Elm Street, Enfield, 860-253-3000

  • Spanish Community of Wallingford, Inc., 284 Washington Street, Wallingford, 860-356-2000

  • Wallingford Public Library, 200 North Main Street, Wallingford, 860-356-2000

  • Stafford Springs Public Library, 10 Levinthal Run, Stafford Springs, 860-684-2852

  • Wolcott Public Library, 469 Bound Line Rd, Wolcott, 800-203-1234

  • Plymouth Town Hall/Human Services Department, 80 Main St, Terryville, 860-356-2000

  • Childrens Community School, 31 Wolcott Street, Waterbury, 800-203-1234

  • Waterbury Youth Services, Inc., 83 Prospect Street, Waterbury, 800-203-1234

  • Silas Bronson Library, 267 Grand Street, Waterbury, 800-203-1234

  • Duggan School, 38 West Porter Street, Waterbury, 800-203-1234

  • Otis Library, 261 Main St, Norwich, 800-203-1234

  • Naugatuck Senior Center, 300 Meadow St, Naugatuck, 800-203-1234

  • Howard Whittemore Memorial Library, 243 Church Street, Naugatuck, 203-729-4591

  • Beacon Falls Senior Center, 57 N Main Street, Beacon Falls, 203-516-8498

  • New Reach Inc, 269 Peck St, New Haven, 800-203-1234

  • Mitchell Library - Financial Empowerment Center,37 Harrison Ave, New Haven, 800-203-1234

  • CAANH - Community Action, 419 Whalley Ave, New Haven, 203-387-7700

  • Woodbridge Senior Center, 4 Meetinghouse Lane, Woodbridge, 203-389-3429

  • West Haven Community House, 227 Elm Street, West Haven, 800-203-12344

  • St Marks Episcopal Church, 15 Pearl St, Mystic, 860-590-8910

  • Milford Senior Center, 9 Jepson Drive, Milford, 800-203-1234

  • Stonington Human Services, 166 South Broad St, Pawcatuck, 800-203-1234

  • Town of Stratford Southend Community Center, 19 Bates Street, Stratford, 203-377-0689

  • Alliance for Community Empowerment, 1070 Park Ave, Bridgeport, 203-366-8241

Getting the earned income tax credit

For the earned income tax credit, the income thresholds range from $16,480 for a single person to $59,187 for a married couple, filing jointly, with three or more qualifying children.

Single or head of household earning less than:

• $16,480 – no qualifying children

• $43,492 – one qualifying child

• $49,399 – two qualifying children

• $53,057 – three or more qualifying children

Married, filing jointly, earning less than:

• $22,610 – no qualifying children

• $49,622 – one qualifying child

• $55,529 – two qualifying children

• $59,187 – three or more qualifying children

Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@providencejournal.com or follow him on Twitter @WheelerReporter.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: How to file free federal and state tax returns in CT in 2023