As tax season returns, so does Codman Square Health Center’s free tax clinic, which provides free tax preparation, filing and financial guidance to income-eligible Boston residents. The clinic— housed at 450 Washington St.— churns out 2,000 tax returns per season, and as many as 50-60 returns on a busy day.

“The hope is that everyone in the community deserves the same level of service as someone who’s paying,” said Jason Andrade, a Certified Financial Planner who has supervised the clinic for 15 years. Codman serves eligible individual residents and their dependents who earn under $75,000 annually.

As participants walk into the clinic at 450 Washington St, a financial guide, like ten-year tax consultant Kiara Kerr, greets and prepares their required paperwork—such as a social security card and valid ID, W2s or 1099 forms, bank statements, and tax summaries for rideshare drivers.

“I come from a corporate background, so I know a lot and I have a lot of information to give,” said Kerr. “I appreciate being able to give it to people [for whom] I know it really matters.”

Another key part of the process, Kerr said, is the financial advice that participants receive from volunteers as they prepare documents and review their credit scores.

“If they need help with debt collection, housing assistance, immigration, legal services, we can, as a guide, after seeing their situation and doing their check-in, we can push them to get other resources around,” she said.

After the volunteers finish filing, it usually takes 24-48 for it to process, after which they will contact participants with any questions or follow up.

Volunteering at Codman serves not only as a way to give back to the community, but also to connect with it. Ellen Chace, a retired electronic engineer, started volunteering at the clinic in 2013.

“I always did my own taxes, but I didn’t have a tax background,” she said. “It gets me out during the winter.”

For first year financial guide and Dorchester resident Gladys Durham, getting certified as a volunteer is not only a chance to give back but also a learning experience of her own.

“I thought I knew a lot, but I learned a lot too,” Durham said while referring to the required credit building workshop volunteers take. “So, all of that knowledge that I received in that class, I’m now able to, one, use it for myself and use it for my kids. I just wanted something to give back to my community and that sounded like something right up my alley.”

The clinic specializes in helping lower-income earners realize tax credits, which can be as much as $14,000 per year for some filers.

“That’s a lot of money,” said Andrade. “So, this program is meaningful to me because we’re helping people who are working really hard from diverse backgrounds, where there’s a lot of predatory services out there that charge a lot for tax services, and what we hope is we’re helping those people save money, and can keep more money in their pocket.”

Codman provides the tax clinic as one of many resources they offer to address social determinants of health, according to Christine Leccese, Codman’s Communications Director.

“And one of those is financial stability,” she said. “We’re a health center, but we offer a lot more than doctors. Stability is very important to someone’s overall health. You know, they don’t have enough money, then they don’t have enough money to buy healthy food and to have stable housing and so on.”

Andrade, a Dot native of Cape Verdean descent, echoed how his involvement with the clinic has brought him closer to his hometown in unexpected ways.

“People are so grateful about you doing it and what’s cool for me is I don’t live in Dorchester anymore, but if I’m in the Dorchester community, sometimes people will see me and be like, ‘You’re the tax guy. You did my taxes.”

Qualifying residents looking to file their taxes as well as anyone interested in volunteering can walk in during operating hours and learn more about offered services and opportunities. The Washington St. clinic location is open Monday and Tuesdays from 4 p.m.-8 p.m. and Saturdays from 9am-1pm. For more information on documentation necessary to receive free tax prep, visit codman.org.