Taxpayer Advocate urges Oregonians to volunteer to help low-income families receive millions in unclaimed tax benefits

(Salem, OR)—Oregon and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are once again recruiting people to assist in the free preparation of taxes as part of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) or Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs, and the Department of Revenue’s Taxpayer Advocate is encouraging Oregonians to volunteer.

For low- and moderate-income families, claiming the tax credits available to them can be a starting point on the path to stronger financial security.

“Too often those tax credits go unclaimed,” said Codi Trudell, Oregon’s Taxpayer Advocate. “The cost and complexity of filing a tax return is a hurdle for too many people.

“Oregon needs more VITA sites and volunteers. By volunteering to help them file their returns and claim their credits, Oregonians can make a difference for people in their local community.”

Volunteers don’t need to be tax experts. Training is provided by the IRS.

By ensuring that eligible taxpayers claim available tax credits like the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, the Oregon Earned Income Credit, and Oregon Kids Credit, volunteers can help taxpayers who need it most receive larger refunds and gain a measure of financial security.

To date, in 2026 volunteers with VITA and AARP free tax assistance programs have jointly prepared 39,135 federal tax returns at 107 sites open throughout the state. Every year, however, the sites are forced to turn away people who need assistance due to a shortage of volunteers.

In addition to the need for volunteers, the IRS is also seeking organizations to sponsor VITA and TCE clinics.

Each tax season, the Oregon Taxpayer Advocate Office offers an interactive map of free tax assistance sites in Oregon on the Department of Revenue website. The VITA sites are represented as blue dots on the map.

“Each blue dot represents an organization that has volunteered to make tax assistance available to the people in their community who need it,” Trudell said. “More volunteers will mean more blue dots and more opportunities for Oregonians to get the tax preparation assistance they need.” 

The VITA and TCE programs include training in a variety of roles, including providing free tax help for low-to-moderate income families who need assistance preparing their tax returns. Across the country, thousands of people volunteer each year and prepare millions of tax returns at thousands of tax sites nationwide.

Volunteers are assigned to work with a sponsoring organization, first to receive training and then to begin volunteering at a location in the community. Training is offered both online and in the classroom. Tax sites are generally open nights and weekends, and the hours are flexible.

Additional information is available on the IRS website. Interested persons can submit an inquiry now using the VITA/TCE Volunteer and Partner Sign Up form moving them one step closer to becoming a VITA or TCE tax volunteer and giving back to their community. The IRS will share information about those interested in volunteering with sponsoring organizations for follow-up contact.

Organizations with an interest in partnering with the IRS to sponsor or host a free tax preparation site in Oregon can also complete and submit the VITA/TCE Volunteer and Partner Sign Up form.

To find a local VITA site, taxpayers can use the IRS Site Locator tool or check the Oregon Department of Revenue’s Free Tax Help map with VITA sites marked in blue.