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Site Help

This page is intended to help visitors to Tax Web make the most of the site and its features.

• Browsers
• Plugins
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint Viewers
  • Adobe Flash Player
• Blank Forms
• Macintosh
• Search Tips
• Accessibility Statement

Help with Browsers

If the suggestions above did not resolve your issue, we suggest these sources for further assistance:

Internet Explorer

If you are using Explorer as your browser, you can get additional help here with:

• Information on Installing the Acrobat Plug-in Files
• Configuring Your Browser to Use Acrobat as a Helper Application
• Downloading a PDF File to Your Hard Drive

To determine the version, select Help on the toolbar then About Internet Explorer, this will launch a window that will display the version.

To upgrade, click on this button

Special Note for Internet Explorer 7

In order to use IRMSWeb, you must enable SSL 3.0. Pop up blockers must also be set to allow pop ups from TAX or turned off completely.

To enable SSL 3.0

1. Select "Tools" from the menu bar at the top of the Internet Explorer window
2. Select "Internet Options" from the drop down menu
3. Select the "Advanced Tab"
4. Scroll down towards the bottom
5. Look for "Use SSL 3.0" under Security section
6. Ensure that this option is checked
7. Click "Apply" and then click "OK"

Netscape Navigator

If you are using Netscape as your browser, you can get additional help here with:

• Using the Navigator Plug-in
• Configuring Navigator to Use Acrobat as a Helper Application
• Downloading a PDF File to Your Hard Drive

To determine the version, select Help on the toolbar then About Communicator, this will display the version.

To upgrade or install Netscape Navigator, click on

America Online (AOL)

If you are using AOL to connect to the Tax website and are unable to view tax forms, you may not have the Adobe Reader software installed and that would prevent you from viewing the forms.

1. Start AOL,
2. Type Multimedia Showplace the keyword box in AOL,
3. Click on the Go button, you will be taken to a page titled Browser Plug-Ins. Adobe Reader is listed on the right-hand column. Click there and follow the directions to download and install the reader on your computer.

Now when you click on a form on our website in AOL, the form will display in the AOL browser for viewing, downloading and printing.

Are you using AOL as your web browser?

The version of AOL is displayed when you run the program.

If you have an older version of AOL, we suggest you upgrade to best view this site.

To upgrade, click on

Plugins

If you are having problems with viewing, downloading or printing tax forms, technical assistance is available from the sources linked below.

Download or upgrade your Adobe Acrobat Reader

Tax forms and documents on the TAX website are in pdf format. To view this type of file, you must have the Acrobat Reader software installed on your computer.

To upgrade or install Acrobat Reader, click on

Download or upgrade your Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint Viewer

Certain documents on the TAX website are in Microsoft Excel format. To view this type of file, you must have the Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Excel Viewer software installed on your computer.

To upgrade or install the Microsoft Excel Viewer, click here

Download or upgrade your Adobe Flash Player

Though Adobe Flash is not required to obtain Tax information, it does provide features that can help taxpayers learn more about filing taxes.

To upgrade or install the Adobe Flash Player, click here

Help with blank forms

If any tax forms are blank in your web browser window:

• Try scrolling down the page. The full form may be on the bottom half of the page.
• Make sure that the Acrobat Reader can view the form in PDF format by downloading the form to your hard drive and then opening it with the reader.
• Make sure that the browser you are using is configured to work with the Acrobat Reader. (see Help with Browsers)
• Try viewing a pdf form from a different Web site such as the IRS website.

Help with Macintosh

If you have a Mac operating system and you are configuring Netscape Navigator, you can get additional help here with:

• Using the PDF Viewer Plug-in Configuring Navigator 2.x or 3.x to use Acrobat as a Helper Application
• Configuring Navigator 4.x to Use Acrobat as a Helper Application

Downloading a PDF File to Your Hard Drive

To upgrade or install Acrobat Reader, click on

Search Tips

If you are searching for sections of the Tax Code, Rulings of the Tax Commissioner or other Tax Regulations; please refer to our Tax Policy Library.

The search results on this website return FORMS first and then WEBPAGES.

For better search results on the Department of Taxation website, try some of the following tips and search operators. Use the exact words or phrases you want to search for. Avoid entering full questions or sentences; for example, How do I file my taxes and when are they due? Instead try, individual, filing, due dates.

comma ,	To avoid searching for an exact phrase, use a comma between the search terms so each term is searched for. The results will return pages where 1 or more of the search terms appear. The more terms that appear on a page, the higher that page will appear in the results. example -- sales tax returns pages where this exact phrase appears. sales, tax returns pages where the word sales, the word tax or both words appear. The pages higher in the results will contain more of the searched terms.
AND	Returns pages containing all searched terms. example -- individual AND income will only return pages containing the word individual and the word income
OR	Returns pages containing any or all search terms found. example -- individual OR income returns pages containing only individual, only income or both individual and income
NOT	Causes the search engine to ignore pages containing the specified search terms. example -- filing NOT status returns pages containing the word filing and not the word status.

The Tax Web Accessibility Statement

The Virginia Department of Taxation is committed to providing access to our web site for individuals with disabilities. To meet this commitment, we will comply with World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Website Accessibility Initiative (WAI) priority level one requirements.

If the format of any material on our web site interferes with your ability to access information due to an issue with accessibility caused by a disability, please contact the Department of Taxation. The Virginia Department of Taxation also welcomes your comments on the accessibility of the Web site and suggestions on how to improve the site's accessibility for users with disabilities.

To enable us to respond in a manner most helpful to you, please indicate the nature of your accessibility problem or comment, the preferred format in which to receive the material, the web address (URL) of the material you are referring to, and your contact information.

Please contact the VATAX Online Team at TaxIndReturns@tax.virginia.gov