Free Income Tax Preparation for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired

Lexington Vocational Services Center, part of the largest organization serving the deaf and hard-of-hearing community in New York State, and Bethex Federal Credit Union, a full-service savings and loan cooperative, are partnering to offer free income tax preparation services to deaf individuals in the five boroughs of New York City.

Bethex will provide two professional tax preparers, trained and certified by the IRS under the federal Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, at Lexington’s Jackson Heights facility, to help deaf consumers complete their federal, state and local income tax filings. A sign language interpreter will be provided by Lexington to facilitate all tax consultations.

The volunteer preparers will be available at Lexington, located at the corner of 30th Avenue and 75th Street in Jackson Heights, Queens, every Monday beginning February 6 through April 9. Appointments are required. Deaf and hearing impaired taxpayers can call Lexington’s video phone at (917) 832-1682 or send an email to: tax@lexnyc.org to schedule an appointment for a private tax consultation.

”Bethex Federal Credit is providing a high value service to underserved New York City residents by bringing the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program to Lexington. They are an excellent partner with a true commitment to the community,” said Adele I. Agin, LCSW, Executive Director of the Lexington Vocational Services Center.

"We are gratified to work with Lexington in helping deaf New Yorkers benefit from our professional tax preparation service. Sharing our expertise in this way is highly consistent with Bethex’s founding principles and our long history of service to the community,” said Jorge Flores, Site Coordinator and Quality Reviewer for Bethex.