VITA Orientations

Every year, the United Way of South Central Michigan’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program provides free tax services to thousands of individuals and families throughout the Capital Area. You can help us provide an invaluable service by volunteering with the VITA program. This year, we will be hosting regular, virtual, orientation sessions to give prospective volunteers a chance to learn about the program, meet staff and some other volunteers, as well as ask questions. All sessions  last roughly one hour.

Click on the link below to view the orientation dates once they have been posted starting in late fall.  To RSVP for one of the sessions or to get more information, please email Nick Miller at n.miller@uwscmi.org.

What is VITA?

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, or VITA, is an IRS program administered by partner organizations throughout the United States. We provide free, high-quality tax preparation services for low to moderate income households making $57,000 or less.

Why is this important?

As a volunteer you provide an invaluable service to your friends and neighbors. An hour of your time results in a refund of more than $1,000 and close to $200 in tax preparation fees saved per household. All told more than $5 million in economic benefit was provided to the community during the 2019 tax season.

In short, our volunteers keep invaluable funds in the pockets of those who need, money that stays in our community.

Why am I important?

Beyond the reasons listed above, we need your help to reach more folks. Nationwide the VITA program only reaches roughly 2.5% of the eligible population annually.  Here in the Capital Area, we serve almost 5% of the eligible population and that still leaves tens of thousands of households unable to take advantage of our services. One of the primary barriers to reaching more households is the number of volunteers that join our program, so you and the hours you contribute truly matter.

By participating in our program there are plenty of ways to learn, grow, and develop:

  • Work with a diverse group of volunteers and clients and develop the communication skills to discuss complicated topics
  • Experienced tax preparers can go on to become quality reviewers who:
    • Support their peers as sources of knowledge
    • Ensure high-quality returns
    • Provide further education to clients regarding their taxes and financial situation
      Learn about invaluable resources available in the community