It’s that time of year again; time to start thinking about your tax return! You should receive all of your W2 and 1099 forms from employers and financial institutions by the end of January.

• If you know you’re getting a refund, best way to get your money back as soon as possible is to file electronically, called “e-filing,” and have your refund direct deposited into your bank account. E-Filing with direct deposit means you will get your refund in about 5-10 days. Best of all, with the IRS’s Free File program, e-filing is completely free for taxpayers who earned up to $57,000 in 2009.

• It’s true that there are quicker ways to get your refund, but beware! Instant refunds, sometimes called rapid refunds, allow you to get your refund immediately or within a day or two. However instant refunds are actually loans—called Refund Anticipation Loans. Instant refunds are loans from a bank that are secured by your income tax refund. And, most importantly, they come with all the risks and expenses of loans.

I strongly advise you to resist the temptation of a Refund Anticipation Loan from a commercial tax preparer. Consumer advocates agree that these loans are very bad news!

Refund Anticipation Loans, also called RALs, are a very expensive way to borrow your own money! RALs are never free; they come with several types of costly fees. There may be application fees, processing fees, account fees, loan fees, and fees for issuing a check, in addition to an unbelievably high annual percentage rate.

According to the National Consumer Law Center, when you consider all the fees related to RALs, the effective annual interest rate can range from 36 to 1200! That’s a shocking amount to pay to borrow your hard-earned money, especially when you could get your refund in less than two weeks absolutely free from the IRS.

• If you don’t have access to the internet, or aren’t comfortable preparing your own tax return, free tax preparation assistance is available for low- and moderate-income individuals. The United Way of Salem County is a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program in our area, which offers free tax preparation to low income taxpayers starting in February. Call them at 205-1800 for details.

Taxpayers may also go directly to a local walk-in IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center to have an IRS tax expert prepare their tax return on the spot for free. The closest IRS Assistance Centers are in May’s Landing and Cherry Hill in New Jersey as well as in Wilmington and Philadelphia.

No appointment is necessary; just bring your W2 and 1099 forms and a photo ID. You may call the IRS at (800) 829-1040 or visit them at irs.gov for more information.

Although South Jersey Legal Services does not prepare tax returns, we do have a low-income tax clinic to assist limited English-proficient taxpayers and all taxpayers with tax controversies that may come up.

• Also, there are more incentives than ever before for low- income taxpayers to file a tax return. For the 2009 and 2010 tax years, the income limits have been raised so more people than ever may qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit.

Working families with incomes below $48,279 and workers without kids, who earned less than $18,440, are likely to qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit.

There is also the Child Tax Credit of up to $1,000 per eligible child that is available for most taxpayers with a dependent child under age 17.

These credits may eliminate a large portion of your tax liability and may result in a substantial tax refund.

Most individuals who earned less than $9,350 are not required to file an income tax return for 2009. However, if taxes were withheld from your paycheck, you may be able to get that money back simply by filing a tax return.

In the meantime, remember: Protect yourself and your family. Know your responsibilities as well as your rights and how to assert them when you need to.

Legal Notes is based on general law and is not intended as individualized advice. If you have a legal problem, contact a licensed attorney to discuss how the law affects your particular legal problem and facts.

South Jersey Legal Services offers free legal services to income-eligible residents and senior citizens in the seven southern counties: Cumberland, Salem, Gloucester, Camden, Burlington, Atlantic & Cape May. For assistance, call the centralized intake unit at 1-800-496-4570.