United Way of King County is operating free tax preparation help through April 15 at Hopelink’s Bellevue facility.

The program is designed to help low and middle-income families prepare their income tax forms, take advantage of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and other tax credits while avoiding fees associated with commercial preparers.

Customers also will be able to sign up for public benefits such as financial education, utility assistance and the Washington Basic Food Program, which has recently widened eligibility requirements making it available to more residents.

“United Way of King County offers the Free Tax Preparation Campaign because we understand that when people are able to establish savings, it creates a cushion that stabilizes their lives and can help them from falling into crisis, even homelessness,” said United Way of King County President and CEO Jon Fine. “Given the current economic climate, this campaign provides an excellent opportunity to help low income families save money.”

The Earned Income Tax Credit is a federal tax program that reduces the amount of income tax owed by low to moderate income workers. The credit ranges from $438 to $4,824 depending on income and the number of qualifying children in a family.

Last year, United Way’s free tax prep campaign filed 12,330 returns countywide and brought back $14.4 million in refunds to the community; $4.6 million of which came from the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Tax preparation services will be provided in multiple languages, including English, Chinese, Spanish, Vietnamese, Russian and Samoan by more than 300 IRS certified volunteers.

Taxpayers must bring photo identification and Social Security Cards (or Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers) for themselves, spouses and dependents. They should also bring wage and earnings statements (Forms W-2), interest and dividend information concerning their income and expenses for the year of 2008.

Tax help is available Tuesdays, 1-5 p.m., English and Chinese; Thursdays 1-9 p.m., English and Spanish; and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., English, Spanish and Russian.

Hopelink in Bellevue is located at 14812 Main Street.