Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Act (VRIPA)--2024 Exemption

[mike the wino]

I am a volunteer with my county's Fire & Rescue Department. We receive a stipend, considered taxable income, based on the number of volunteer hours worked, and I received a W-2 for that income. The Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Act (VRIPA) allows for up to $600 to be exempt from federal income taxes, and my total income on the W-2 was above that amount. How do I claim this exemption in Turbo Tax?

[rjs · Accepted solution]

You cannot claim the exemption on your tax return. The exempt amount is not supposed to be included in the wages on your W-2. The W-2 should show only the amount you were paid above the $600 exemption.

Check with whatever department issued your W-2 about how they calculated the amount of wages on the W-2. They should have already subtracted the exempt amount. If they did not, they might have determined that for some reason the payments that you received do not qualify for the exemption. If your W-2 is incorrect, ask them to issue a corrected W-2.

The exemption is actually a maximum of $50 per month, so $600 is the maximum for the year if you were active all year. If you were not a volunteer for the entire year you would not be entitled to the full $600 exemption.

[mike the wino]

Thanks for the response. I checked my hours and quarterly "wages" and the amounts are accurately reflected on the W-2, which is to say the exempt amount wasn't exempted. The finance director for the department did indicate that "for Tax Year 2025, they will figure out how to setup SpringBrook to automate this process". They must have thought there was some way we (volunteers) could apply the exemption manually ourselves for 2024's tax return.