The IRS has opened the application period for Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) matching grants for calendar-year 2026.
Applications will be accepted from May 15 to July 14, 2025. The period of performance for the grant will be Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2026, according to the IRS.
The LITC program, administered by the IRS Office of the Taxpayer Advocate and led by National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins, provides partial funding to clinics that operate independently of the IRS.
Under Internal Revenue Code Section 7526, the IRS awards matching grants to qualifying organizations to develop, expand, or maintain an LITC. For every dollar of funding awarded by the IRS, an LITC must provide a dollar in matching funds. An LITC must also provide services for free or for no more than a nominal fee (except for reimbursement of actual costs incurred), the IRS said.
According to the IRS, LITCs ensure the fairness and integrity of the tax system for taxpayers by:
- Providing pro bono representation to assist low-income taxpayers in resolving tax disputes with the IRS;
- Educating taxpayers for whom English is a second language (ESL) about their rights and responsibilities as taxpayers; and
- Identifying and advocating for issues that impact these taxpayers.
Eligible organizations may request up to $200,000 for the 2026 grant year.
Despite the IRS’s efforts to foster parity in availability and accessibility when choosing organizations receiving LITC matching grants and the continued increase in clinic services nationwide, there remain several uncovered states: Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, and West Virginia.
In addition, Florida, Nevada, and South Dakota are only partially covered. The uncovered counties in these states include:
- Florida: Brevard, Citrus, Glades, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Highlands, Indian River, Lafayette, Lake, Madison, Martin, Nassau, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor, and Volusia.
- Nevada: Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Storey, and White Pine.
- South Dakota: Aurora, Beadle, Bennett, Bon Homme, Brookings, Brown, Brule, Buffalo, Butte, Campbell, Charles Mix, Clark, Clay, Codington, Corson, Custer, Davison, Deuel, Dewey, Douglas, Edmunds, Fall River, Faulk, Grant, Gregory, Haakon, Hamlin, Hand, Hanson, Harding, Hughes, Hutchinson, Hyde, Jackson, Jerauld, Jones, Kingsbury, Lake, Lawrence, Lincoln, Lyman, McCook, McPherson, Meade, Mellette, Miner, Minnehaha, Moody, Oglala Lakota, Pennington, Perkins, Potter, Sanborn, Shannon, Spink, Stanley, Sully, Todd, Tripp, Turner, Union, Walworth, Yankton, and Ziebach.
Although each application for the 2026 grant year will be given due consideration, the IRS said it’s especially interested in receiving applications from organizations providing services in these underserved geographic areas. For organizations that intend to refer low-income taxpayers involved in controversies with the IRS to qualified representatives rather than providing representation by in-house staff, priority will be given to established organizations that can help provide coverage to underserved geographic areas, the agency added.
For the ESL Education Program, special consideration will be given to established organizations with existing community partnerships that can swiftly implement and deliver services to the target audiences.
Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. ET on July 14, 2025 (Funding Number: TREAS-GRANTS-042026-001).
For more information, see IRS Publication 3319, 2026 Grant Application Package and Guidelines. For questions, contact the LITC Program Office at litcprogramoffice@irs.gov.
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Tags: grants, Income Taxes, IRS, Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic, Taxes
