Question: Regarding the free tax prep that Kokua Line mentioned Sunday (808ne.ws/3u7wtwk), can they do that over the phone?
Answer: No. The AARP Foundation’s Tax-Aide program, which will help Hawaii residents file state and federal income tax returns starting in February, requires the taxpayer to submit a detailed intake form and necessary tax documents on paper. The filer’s federal and state income tax information will not be collected over the phone, according to the Hawaii chapter’s new website.
Some locations will allow people to call ahead to make an appointment, rather than offering only walk-in service. However, the telephone call is to make an appointment for service, not to handle the tax return. Work on tax returns will be done face to face or on a drop-off basis; either way, all tax information must be presented on paper. See 808ne.ws/hitaxaarp for links to a list of the program’s locations and descriptions of each location’s process.
Other readers also had questions about Tax-Aide, which focuses on completing relatively uncomplicated federal and state tax returns for older people, without charging a fee for preparing or e-filing the return. Here are two more, answered from the Tax-Aide website:
Q: Do I have to be over 55 to use this service?
A: No, there is no age restriction, and you don’t have to be an AARP member. Although Tax-Aide is focused on older taxpayers, it is not strictly limited to helping them.
Q: Does my husband have to be at the appointment for us to file jointly?
A: “We prefer that both spouses be present during the preparation of a joint return since each spouse is legally responsible for its content. If one spouse is not available, the other spouse can come in alone to have the return prepared, but must obtain the other spouse’s signature on Form 8879 and return the form to the site before the return can be e-filed,” the website says.
Q: How far in advance can I renew a Hawaii driver’s license? Also, how far in advance does the vision test need to be dated to be used for driver’s license renewal in Honolulu?
A: A Hawaii driver’s license can be renewed up to six months prior to its expiration date, according to Honolulu’s Department of Customer Services. As for your second question, if you don’t want to take the vision test at the DMV on the day your renew your license, you can present an original “certificate of eye examination” completed, signed and dated by a licensed ophthalmologist or optometrist within six months before your renewal, the department’s website says. “A prescription for corrective glasses or contacts is not a vision certificate and will not be accepted for the driver’s license vision test requirement of your driver’s license application/renewal,” it says.
Mahalo
On Saturday I went into the McDonald’s on South King Street to use the restroom. Unbeknownst to me, my wallet fell out of my shorts. I did not discover the wallet missing until I got home to Mililani. In desperation, I called every place I could think of that we had visited that day, including a flower shop and restaurant. In an act of complete desperation, I called the King Street McDonald’s, thinking there was no way it could be there. A manager named Theresa asked me to describe the wallet and then asked my name. I can only describe what happened next as a miracle. She told me I was very lucky that someone had turned it in and I could pick it up. So, my wife and I drove from Mililani back into town. The wallet was completely intact — no cash or credit cards missing. To the honest person who turned it in, I can only pray God’s blessings upon you for your kindness and honesty. I am eternally grateful and will lift you up in prayer daily. — Grateful senior
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
