April is approaching fast, which means the annual tax season will be here soon. According to income tax regulations, if you worked and earned income in the previous calendar year, the you must file a tax return. This applies to international students as well. Many people may ask, “If I did not work, does that mean I do not need to file a tax return?” The answer is no. Even if you did not work, you are still strongly encouraged to file an income tax form because you may be eligible to get some money back.

Filing a tax return can be a very tedious process. You can easily get overwhelmed by all the forms you need to fill out. However, here’s the good news – there are several services on campus that can help you with your tax return and make your life much easier. Let’s take a look.

Every year, York International organizes income tax information sessions to help students with their tax returns. During these sessions, officials from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will provide crucial income tax information and advise students about the related income tax policies via video-conferencing from Ottawa. This is a great starting point for you to learn about how to properly file a tax return. Thus, you are highly recommended to attend a session. Of course, if you have any questions, you may ask the CRA official.

This year, the income tax information sessions will be held on:

Wednesday, March 7, 2012 (10AM – 12PM)

Stedman Lecture Hall 120E

Or

Wednesday, March 7, 2012 (2PM – 4PM)

Stedman Lecture Hall 120E

You only need to attend one of these two sessions.

In additional to York International, York University Student Tax Association (YUSTA) is also here to help. Every year, YUSTA organizes free tax return-filing services for York students. Trained volunteers will prepare all the forms for you; all you need to do is bringing all your income forms and slips. Free services will run from March 12 – 16 and March 19 – 23. I personally have used their services for the past two years and they really made my life easier. Therefore, you are also highly encouraged to take advantage of this great opportunity. YUSTA has not announced the exact time and location of the services yet; but once they have decided, they will put up posters all around the campus so keep your eyes open for them.