A note about Rounding

You may enter all numbers in dollars and cents. Since this system has been designed to comply with PA Act 32, all numbers will be rounded off to whole dollars. If you do not want your tax return processed in rounded numbers, you may submit a paper return.

What is my PIN?

Taxpayers that appeared on the Lancaster County Tax Collection Bureau tax rolls for the 2010 tax year were automatically mailed a tax return with a preprinted PIN. This PIN is unique to a taxpayer and can not be shared with the taxpayer's spouse. If you are unable to locate your tax return or if you did not receive a return, you can contact the tax office at (717) 569-4521 to request a PIN. You will be asked to provide your Social Security Number and other information. Should you need to update your address, please call the tax office for instructions.

Who can file?

Individuals who lived in a member municipality and/or school district for part of the tax year or the entire tax year can file their local returns electronically. A taxpayer and his/her spouse can file a combined return, using separate columns, or individual returns. You will not be able to join two individual tax returns into a combined return once you have filed. Please note that a taxpayer and his/her spouse must be filing at the same tax rate to combine their returns.

What has been done to protect my confidential information?

The Tax Bureau has consulted with security and industry professionals to ensure that steps have been taken to safely gather your personal information and to retain it in a format that protects it from outside sources. The electronic filing system is also protected by 128-bit Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption, the industry standard for online banking and trading.

What will I need to file?

The Tax Bureau recommends that you gather together the following items that will be needed during the on-line interview process.

-Preprinted tax return mailed to you that includes your PIN

-Compensation and Net Income/Loss Documentation (includes W-2's, 1099's, Schedule(s) for income)

-Unreimbursed Employee Business Expenses

-Pay stub with year-to-date earnings for taxpayers who moved during the tax year

-Amount of Philadelphia Tax Credit (if applicable)

-If required to file a local tax return elsewhere, you will need a completed copy of the other municipality's local tax return (including documentation)

Is there a fee to file electronically?

Lancaster County Tax Collection Bureau is offering this electronic filing option free of charge to taxpayers. If a taxpayer owes additional taxes for the tax year, he/she can pay the balance due in person, by mail, or by using a credit card at the time their return is electronically filed. The third party vendor will charge a fee for the use of a credit card.

How do I file?

Follow the step-by-step instructions for the filing process. The program will prompt you to enter information needed to calculate your local tax return. The basic steps are as follows:

• Taxpayer Interview (identifies taxpayer and his/her spouse)
• Residency Interview (sets up address history including tracking of physical address where you resided and mailing address information)
• Income and Adjustments
• Tax Return Summary (calculate tax due and status -refund, even, or balance due)
• Sign and Print

What happens after I file?

When you have completed this process, information gathered during the interactive on-line interview will be compared to tax office records. If your filing agrees with information readily available to the tax office, an update will be made to your account signifying that you have met your local filing requirements. It should be noted that your local tax office does not have the same access to your tax information as made available to the state and federal governments. The tax office reserves the right to request additional information, including documentation related to your income, net profits, business expenses, or other items to verify residency issues. During the interview process you will be prompted to retain documents that may be required by the tax office.

What benefit is there to filing electronically?

Taxpayers who file their tax returns electronically should expect a quicker response time for processing their tax returns. Taxpayers with complex tax returns may find that the electronic filing option does not best suit their filing needs.

What if I am asked by the tax office to provide additional information and fail to do so?

Taxpayers who have been notified that their tax returns are incomplete will be contacted by the Tax Bureau and provided 30 days to respond. If a response is not received in that time frame, the return will move into an incomplete filing status which means that you have not met your tax return filing obligation.

What years can be filed electronically?

At this time the current software has been developed allowing for current tax year filings. Based on the usage of this software, future filing capabilities may be expanded to better meet our residents' filing needs.

How do I access the electronic filing program?

Once you gather the information needed to file, proceed by entering your Social Security Number and the PIN that was sent to you in the mail into the fields at the top of this page, and then click the 'Sign In' button to begin.