Since early March of 2024, the Lotus Light Charity Society launched their annual two month long free tax filing service for low-income seniors, persons with disabilities, families receiving social assistance, students, and new immigrants. Lotus Light has been collaborating with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) through their Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP) to deliver this valuable service to their community for over 20 years.
According to statistical data, the elderly population in Vancouver has swelled in recent years, and many of them live in retirement homes, are unable to rely on family, and struggle with the tax filing process because of language barriers or other such issues. Free volunteer tax filing services serve to alleviate this social problem, but high demand means most tax clinics are running at full capacity, with some being fully booked even before appointment scheduling began. Lotus Light received dozens of tax filing appointment calls every day since March, keeping the volunteers extremely busy; especially when some clients’ cases are more complex, requiring significant patience and time from volunteers to understand and handle their case properly.
Lotus Light Charity Society reports that the number of appointment requests for tax filing this year far exceeds previous years, with many referrals coming from other organizations like S.U.C.C.E.S.S., resulting in openings being fully booked within a week of starting the filing period. Lotus Light hopes to have more volunteers experienced in tax filing or those willing to undergo training to join Lotus Light’s annual tax clinic next year to ensure everyone receives the necessary assistance.
For more information about Lotus Light’s activities, please visit our website at www.vllcs.org, or contact us via phone at 604-685-5548, or email at llcsvancouver@gmail.com. Lotus Light Charity Society is a registered charitable organization with government registration number BN 14110-4893-RR0001.
