B.I.R. And U.V.I. Announce Partnership To Help Residents With Tax Returns

ST.  CROIX — Bureau of Internal Revenue Director Marvin Pickering and Dr. Dion Guows, chairwoman of Accounting and Finance of the University of the Virgin Islands (U.V.I.), announced via press release on Friday the continued partnership that allows accounting students of U.V.I. to help local taxpayers with the filing of their 2015 income tax returns. The service is a free offering to taxpayers who are filing simple tax returns with the B.I.R., according to the release.

The service, called the Volunteer Taxpayer Assistance Program (V.T.A.P.), will start on all three islands beginning Saturday, February 20, and will run every Saturday until April 9, with the exception of Saturday, March 26. Assistance will be provided on a first-come-first-serve basis, and the interns will be completing Forms 1040EZ and 1040A only, the release states.

On St. Thomas, the program will be at the B.I.R.’s office at 6115 Estate Smith Bay, in Red Hook, across the street from the Red Hook dock from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

On St. Croix, it will be held at the bureau’s office at 4008 Estate Diamond from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. And on St. John, the program will be held from 9:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m. at the bureau’s office at the Motor Vehicle Bureau in Cruz Bay.

Taxpayers should have available all W-2VIs, 1099Rs (retirement income), other Form 1099s (interest and other income), and Form SSA (Social Security income) readily available when they arrive at the office.

Questions about V.T.A.P. should be referred to the offices on Thomas and St. John at telephone number 340-715-1040, and on St. Croix at 340-773-1040.

Mr. Pickering also reminded the taxpaying public that it is against the law for any B.I.R. employee to charge fees for preparation of a tax return. He added that any taxpayer who can provide proof of payment of a B.I.R. employee for the preparation of tax returns should call him directly at (340) 773-1040, ext. 4223 to report the violation.