For tax year 2022 some tax credits that were expanded in 2021 will return to 2019 levels. This means that affected taxpayers will likely receive a smaller refund compared with the previous tax year. Changes include amounts for the Child Tax Credit (CTC), Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child and Dependent Care Credit.
- Those who got $3,600 per dependent in 2021 for the CTC will, if eligible, get $2,000 for the 2022 tax year.
- For the EITC, eligible taxpayers with no children who received roughly $1,500 in 2021 will now get a maximum of $530 in 2022.
- The Child and Dependent Care Credit returns to a maximum of $2,100 in 2022 instead of $8,000 in 2021.
If you are one of the estimated 100 million people that are eligible to file your tax return for free you can keep all of your refund money by choosing one of three options.
In person full-service tax preparation
The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) , AARP Foundation Tax-Aide, and The Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs have operated for over 50 years. All these services use IRS certified tax preparers and meet high IRS quality standards. VITA/TCE and Tax-Aide sites offer free tax help to people who need assistance in preparing their tax returns, including:
- People who generally make $60,000 or less
- Persons with disabilities; and
- Limited English-speaking taxpayers
- 60 years or older
To find a VITA or an AARP Tax Aide site go here .
Remote full-service tax preparation
You can prepare your own return with help from IRS certified volunteers when you need it through MNINCOMETAXSERVICE if:
- Your income is $73,000 or less.
- You can access fillable forms to prepare your own return without assistance.