News Releases
ScholarShare Makes It Easy to Deposit Tax Refund into 529 Account
California’s 529 College Savings Plan Works with the California Franchise Tax Board to Directly Deposit Tax Refunds into 529 Accounts
March 15, 2016
SACRAMENTO – ScholarShare, California’s 529 college savings plan, encourages parents to put their tax refund to work, and consider depositing the refund into a 529 account. The tax refund can grow and bring potential lifelong returns to an aspiring college graduate.
ScholarShare worked with the California Franchise Tax Board to make it easy to deposit the tax refund directly from the Franchise Tax Board into a ScholarShare account. In order to make a direct deposit, the ScholarShare account holder will need their ScholarShare account number and investment portfolio number, and the ScholarShare routing number. Then, the account holder can complete the sections of CA Form 540 to authorize the deposit. Complete details are available at www.scholarshare.com/CAtaxrefund.
Multiple ScholarShare resources are available to help develop clear college savings goals, identify the best college savings plan portfolio, and make continued savings simple. Automatic contribution plans can help keep you on track toward achieving your goals with as little as $15 per pay period using automatic payroll deduction. Friends and family members who wish to help alleviate the costs of higher education can make an eGift contribution to an existing account.
ScholarShare offers a wide variety of low-cost investment options and provides valuable tax advantages. Anyone with a valid Social Security number or Taxpayer Identification Number, can open a new account. Funds can be used at any eligible educational institution in the United States, and some abroad, for a variety of qualified higher education expenses, including mandatory fees, books, supplies, computer equipment, or even certain room and board costs.
About the ScholarShare 529 College Savings Plan:
To sign up for an account or for more information about the plan, visit www.scholarshare.com. For information about the ScholarShare Investment Board (SIB), visit http://www.treasurer.ca.gov/scholarshare. Like ScholarShare on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/scholarshare529 and follow us on Twitter at @ScholarShare529.
Named for the section of the IRS code under which they were created, 529 plans offer valuable tax advantages. Contributions are made with money that has already been taxed. Once funds are placed in the account, investment earnings, if any, are not federally or state taxed, if withdrawn to pay for qualified higher education expenses.
The ScholarShare 529 College Savings Plan Twitter and Facebook pages are managed by the State of California.
For more news, please follow the Treasurer on Twitter at @CalTreasurer, and on Facebook at California State Treasurer's Office.