Low-Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITC) assist low-income individuals who have a tax dispute with the IRS and the Mass  Dept of Revenue and provide education and outreach to individuals who speak English as a second language (ESL). According to the 2021 LITC Program Report from Taxpayer Advocacy Services, LITC represented 19,413 Taxpayers, brought 2,398 taxpayers into filing compliance, provided consultation or advice to 17,792 Taxpayers, and brought 2,990 taxpayers into collection compliance.

The Asian American Civic Association (AACA) has launched the AACA LITC. Headquartered at the AACA office at 87 Tyler Street in Boston’s Chinatown, the AACA LITC prides itself in being the only LITC in Massachusetts dedicated to supporting the Asian community, with bilingual capabilities in Chinese, Vietnamese, Haitian, Hindi, and more.

  In an interview with Dieu Vu CPA , Lead Qualified Tax Expert, she explained that “Our services are free. We are independent from the IRS and the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS). We can help taxpayers respond to IRS notices and correct account problems and represent those individuals whose income is below a certain level and who need to resolve tax problems with the IRS including representing taxpayers in audits, appeals, and tax collection disputes before the IRS and in court.”

Since its inception, the AACA LITC has helped clients, individuals and corporate, deal with a variety of tax issues with the IRS. Additionally, they have held workshops on Taxpaper Rights with non English, limited English and native English speakers. All attendees were surprised by how little they knew. More workshops are being planned for the summer with the Indian, Vietnamese, Haitian and Hindu communities.

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Vu further described that through these workshops, a growing list of taxpayers have contacted the clinic including: 

“Taxpayer C, nearly in tears, explained that she hadn’t filed her taxes for two years and she was scared that the IRS was going to garnish her wages. She had never received her W2 form in the mail.  She had tried to get a copy of her W2 so she could file her taxes, but her employer said they no longer had it on file. She was a school teacher and was dealing with a new school administrator.  The AACA LITC CPA is representing  C and beginning to sort out the confusion.”

C said ‘I am incredibly relieved and grateful to the AACA LITC. I have always paid my taxes so this fight with my employer was really upsetting, I was feeling totally helpless. The CPA was very supportive. I would never have been able to afford a lawyer or a CPA on my salary’ “

Taxpayer P was a longstanding, charitable organization that came to the AACA LITCi as a referral from Greater Boston Legal Services.  Due to a serious internal failure during their management transition and the inadequate performance of a previous tax preparer,  P was behind in filing form 990-N for several years and was in danger of losing its IRS 501c3 tax exempt status. P had already received an IRS notice for not filing their tax returns  After connecting with the AACA LITC Intake Coordinator, the Qualified Tax Expert collected the financial data for these years and prepared filings for the lapsed years. We also instructed P’s management how to file and submit form 990N via IRS website for the current year.”

Taxpayer M was a senior taxpayer who came to AACA LITC for help because she could not speak English. She explained that she had not received her Form 1099-G unemployment compensation for fiscal year 2021 so she could file her tax return.  We gave her our Intake Form in Chinese which was easier for her to complete. The Qualified Tax Expert provided her step-by-step instructions on how to request the 2021 Form 1099-G online by accessing the website of Commonwealth of Mass Department of Unemployment Assistance. We are waiting to see if she can utilize the website or if we need to provide further assistance”

Taxpayer B came to AACA LITC after she got the IRS notice that IRS could not process her claim for recovery rebate credit on her 2021 return. B was a non English speaking taxpayer and had limited access to a computer.  We accepted her case and asked her to get a copy of her 2021 return to investigate her case and confirm if she did receive the first and second economic impact payments. We wrote a letter to IRS to explain her case” 

Du described that all AACA LITC services are provided confidentially and information is not reported to the IRS or MDOR without the client’s permission.  She described:

“Many people, especially immigrants documented and undocumented, are very nervous when dealing with the US government. For example, during a recent workshop with Chinese limited English speakers, a Chinese immigrant student asked about the tax liability on gifts received. She was anxious about how and when to report the financial amount of the gifts.  She wasn’t sure if the US tax laws were different for immigrants. I explained that a gift or inheritance would not typically be considered taxable income at the federal level regardless of immigrant status. However a gift or inheritance later could produce income (perhaps they earn interest or dividends, or you collect rent) and that income would likely be taxable. 

Here was a simple question which required sound advice. She made an appointment to come to the clinic after the workshop for free advice!

 Tamara Borland, Director, LITC Program, Taxpayer Advocate Service, IRS, emphasizes that the LITC Program protects taxpayer rights by providing access to representation for low-income taxpayers so that achieving a correct outcome in an IRS dispute is not dependent on the taxpayer’s ability to pay for representation. Because many low-income taxpayers speak English as a second language, or do not speak English at all, LITCs, like the AACA LITC,  provide access to services in other languages. This allows taxpayers to obtain needed representation and education helping them understand and exercise their rights under the tax laws. 

Dieu Vu, CPA, Lead Qualified Tax Expert, welcomes all questions and referrals. Please email litc@aaca-boston.org  or call  617-426-9492 extension 285

SAMPAN, published by the nonprofit Asian American Civic Association, is the only bilingual Chinese-English newspaper in New England, acting as a bridge between Asian American community organizations and individuals in the Greater Boston area. It is published biweekly and distributed free-of-charge throughout metro Boston; it is also delivered to as far away as Hawaii.