Tax preparation for Mentor, OH residents

Federal, Ohio and Mentor city returns, prepared together. Elena Rusakovich, an IRS-registered tax preparer (PTIN), prepares returns for individuals, families and small businesses in Mentor from our office in Brunswick, about 50 minutes away. We’re open Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm, and every day from 8 am to 9 pm from January 1 to April 15. Book online or call (440) 212-9613.

Mentor city income tax: the short version

• Rate: 2.0% for 2026.
• Who collects it: RITA, the Regional Income Tax Agency. The city doesn’t collect it itself. Your Mentor return is a RITA Form 37.
• Who files: Every Mentor resident aged 18 or over files with RITA each year, whether or not tax is due: a Form 37 return or, if none of your income is taxable, a Declaration of Exemption. Residents under 18 are exempt from the tax and don’t need to file. Retirees with no taxable income file the exemption only once.

Work outside Mentor? The credit usually covers it

Mentor’s credit is a full credit for the tax you pay to the city where you work, counted up to 2.0% of that income.

An example: you earn $60,000 and work in Cleveland.

• Cleveland withholds its 2.5%: $1,500.
• Mentor’s tax on the same pay is 2.0%: $1,200.
• Mentor’s credit: $1,200.
• You owe Mentor nothing more: the credit covers the whole Mentor tax.

The same $60,000 of wages earned in other nearby cities, and what you’d still owe Mentor after its credit:

Where you work	Its city tax rate	Still owed to Mentor
Cleveland	2.5%	$0
Euclid	2.85%	$0
Solon	2.0%	$0
Lakewood	1.5%	$300
Parma	2.5%	$0

School district income tax

The Mentor Exempted Village School District has no school district income tax, and none of the school districts based in Lake County charges one in 2026.

What’s different about Mentor

Mentor, in Lake County, has used RITA since 2008. Its rate is 2.0%, with a full credit up to 2.0%, so residents who work in Cleveland, at 2.5%, usually owe Mentor nothing more.

Mentor has about 47,000 residents (Census Bureau, 2025 estimate), and 24.3% are 65 or older. Its workers average a 21.6-minute commute. Because Mentor’s credit matches its own 2.0% rate, a job in Cleveland or Euclid, at 2.5% and 2.85%, leaves nothing more to pay Mentor.

What Ohio law sets for Mentor

Ohio law sets these for Mentor as for every other city. The tax covers wages, including your 401(k) contributions, plus self-employment and net rental income, but not Social Security or pensions. Returns are due April 15; a federal extension moves the filing date but not the payment date. If you expect to owe $200 or more, you make estimated payments during the year. Our guide explains these rules.

What we do for Mentor clients

We prepare your federal, Ohio and Mentor city return (RITA Form 37) together, and set up estimated payments when your Mentor tax isn’t withheld at work. We also handle small business returns and bookkeeping, in English, Russian and Ukrainian. Here’s what to bring to your appointment.

Getting here from Mentor

Our office is at 3126 Paxton Dr, Brunswick. From central Mentor it’s about 50 miles, around 50 minutes by car.

More on city income tax: Live in one Ohio city and work in another · Working from home and city income tax. Nearby: Euclid · Solon · Cleveland.

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This page summarises information published by RITA and the Ohio Department of Taxation and is provided for general guidance, not as tax advice for your situation. Rates and rules change — check the official pages, or ask us, before relying on any figure here.

Sources: RITA tax rates, tax year 2026 · RITA 2025 Form 37 instructions · RITA: Mentor member page · RITA: Do I need to file? · Ohio school district income tax list, 2026 · Ohio Department of Taxation, find your school district · U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Mentor · Ohio Revised Code Chapter 718. Checked 2026-10-13.